Mumbai, June 8 (IANS): Gold and silver prices declined sharply on Monday, with precious metals falling by up to 4 per cent amid escalating tensions in West Asia, a volatile global macroeconomic environment and surging crude oil prices. On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), gold futures for the August contract fell as much as 1.85 per cent, or Rs 2,882, to an intraday low of Rs 1,52,712 before trading at Rs 1,53,550, down over 1 per cent or Rs 2,044. The yellow metal touched an intraday high of Rs 1,54,512, still lower than the previous close. Silver futures for the July contract also came under pressure, trading at Rs 2,41,763, down Rs 6,774 or around 3 per cent. The white metal touched an intraday low of Rs 2,39,064, marking a decline of 3.81 per cent during the session, after opening at Rs 2,51,001 on the MCX.
International markets mirrored the weakness, with COMEX silver trading at $67.17 per ounce, down 2.79 per cent, while COMEX gold slipped nearly 1 per cent to $4,324.70 per ounce. Commodity analysts attributed the decline to stronger-than-expected US jobs data, which reinforced expectations that the US Federal Reserve may keep interest rates elevated for a longer period, reducing the appeal of non-yielding assets such as gold and silver. They noted that while geopolitical tensions continued to provide some safe-haven support, optimism surrounding potential US-Iran negotiations and easing concerns over supply disruptions limited buying interest. Meanwhile, crude oil prices surged, with Brent crude rising around 4 per cent to $96.90 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) climbing more than 4 per cent to $94.75 per barrel. Asian equity markets also traded lower, with Japan’s Nikkei falling nearly 4 per cent, South Korea’s KOSPI dropping 5 per cent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declining around 1 per cent.