Gold, Silver Rate Today Live Updates: Gold prices dipped on Friday and were on track for a third consecutive weekly decline, pressured by a strengthening US dollar and the Federal Reserve's increasingly hawkish stance. The non-interest-bearing asset lost appeal as higher interest rates loom.
Gold Rate Today: Outlook for Gold
Goldman Sachs now expects gold to reach $4,900 an ounce by December, lower than its previous forecast of $5,400, after revising its outlook to reflect the view that the Fed is unlikely to cut rates this year. On the geopolitical front, oil tanker traffic resumed through the Strait of Hormuz, while the US announced on Thursday that it had lifted its blockade on Iran. Among other precious metals, spot silver declined 1.5% to $64.83 per ounce, platinum fell 1.3% to $1,674.47, and palladium eased 0.8% to $1,268.65 per ounce.
Gold Rate Today: Fed Policy Stance Weighs
Projections released after the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting showed that nine of the 19 policymakers now anticipate at least one interest rate increase this year, even though the central bank left rates unchanged at its first meeting under Warsh's leadership. Inflation concerns linked to the Iran conflict have also prompted several central banks around the world to either raise borrowing costs or signal their intention to tighten policy further. Market expectations for a US rate hike in December have risen sharply, with traders now assigning an 87% probability to such a move, compared with 61% before the Fed's latest decision, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Since gold does not generate interest income, higher interest rates tend to reduce its attractiveness relative to yield-bearing assets.
Gold Rate Today: Why Gold is Down Again
Tim Waterer, Chief Market Analyst at KCM Trade, said gold's gains following the US-Iran peace agreement faded quickly as renewed strength in the dollar took centre stage after the Federal Reserve adopted a firmer tone under Chairman Kevin Warsh. According to Waterer, the market's focus has shifted back to monetary policy, with the Fed's stance outweighing the positive geopolitical backdrop that had briefly supported bullion.
Gold Rate Today: Trading Activity Subdued
Trading activity was relatively subdued across Asia as markets in mainland China and Hong Kong remained shut for the Dragon Boat Festival holiday. The dollar hovered near its highest level in a year, making gold more expensive for buyers holding other currencies.
Gold Rate Today: Gold Prices Drop
Gold prices moved lower on Friday and were headed for a third straight weekly decline, pressured by a strengthening US dollar and the Federal Reserve's increasingly hawkish stance, which reduced the appeal of the non-interest-bearing asset. Spot gold slipped 0.6% to $4,184.33 an ounce by 0211 GMT and was down 0.9% for the week. US gold futures for August delivery also weakened, falling 1% to $4,202.10 per ounce.
Gold Imports in India: Sharp Decline After Duty Hike
Gold, Silver Rate Today Live Updates: India's gold imports have fallen sharply by around 70% to 25-30 tonnes following the government's decision to raise customs duty on the precious metal to 15%, more than double the earlier rate. The revised duty structure, which came into effect on May 13, increased import taxes on both gold and silver from 6% to 15%. Monthly gold imports have dropped significantly from the earlier 75-100 tonnes to about 25-30 tonnes after the duty hike. Despite the decline in import volumes, the value of gold imports increased 34% year-on-year to $3.41 billion in May, largely due to higher global prices. During the first two months of FY27, covering April and May, gold imports jumped 60.14% to $9.04 billion.
Gold accounts for more than 5% of India's total imports. In FY26, India's gold imports climbed 24% to a record $71.98 billion. However, on a volume basis, imports declined 4.76% to 721.03 tonnes. India, the world's second-largest consumer of gold after China, imports large quantities of the metal primarily to meet demand from the jewellery industry. These purchases result in substantial foreign exchange outflows. The increase in import duty followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for moderation in gold purchases and greater fiscal prudence to curb avoidable spending of foreign exchange reserves.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India.)
