Mumbai, Oct 31 || The prices of precious metals slipped in early trade on Friday, with gold and silver prices declining on the Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX), mirroring weakness in international markets amid a stronger US dollar.
Gold futures on MCX opened 0.29 per cent lower at Rs 1,21,148 per 10 grams, compared with Thursday’s close of Rs 1,21,508. Silver futures also began the session 0.47 per cent down at Rs 1,48,140 per kg, tracking losses in global spot prices.
However, it recovered a bit in the early hours as around 11:38 a.m., the future gold contract expiring on December 5 was trading at Rs 1,21,557 per 10 grams, up 0.04 per cent, while the silver future contract was trading flat at Rs 1,48,747 per kg. The early decline was seen as traders booked profits ahead of key US economic data.
In the International market, spot gold fell 0.5 per cent to $4,004 per ounce in the morning, pressured by a firm dollar and fading expectations of early rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve. US gold futures for December delivery were largely unchanged at $4,016.70 per ounce.