Asia Gold-Volatile prices dim Indian sales; silver shines in some hubs

SouthGobi Resources

12/02/2021 14:05

* Indian consumers waiting for further dip in prices- dealer
    * Chinese market in $5-$8/oz premiums

    By Rajendra Jadhav and Bharat Gautam
    Feb 12 (Reuters) - Physical gold demand eased this week in
India as volatility in domestic prices put off buyers, while
interest for silver remained strong in Singapore and Japan.
    Activity in top hub China, meanwhile, was subdued due to the
Lunar New Year holiday.
    Local gold futures  MAUc1  in India slipped to around 47,300
rupees per 10 grams on Friday, after rising above 48,000 rupees
earlier this week. Last week, prices fell to a near eight-month
low of 46,600 rupees. 
    "Prices are attractive, but consumers are hoping they could
fall further. They are delaying buying," said Ashok Jain,
proprietor of Mumbai-based gold wholesaler Chenaji Narsinghji.
    Dealers charged premiums of about $5 an ounce over official
domestic prices, inclusive of 12.5% import and 3% sales levies,
versus last week's $6 premium, a six-month peak.
    Jewellery demand is quite volatile, but investors are taking
advantage of lower prices, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a
bullion importing bank.
    Chinese customers were charged premiums of $5-$8 an ounce
over benchmark spot rates.  XAU= .
    The retail market was quiet ahead of the holiday, but some
investor activity on the Shanghai Gold Exchange lifted premiums,
Peter Fung, head of dealing at Wing Fung Precious Metals, said.
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2KI08Q
    In Hong Kong, dealers sold bullion between a discount of $3
an ounce and a $1 premium. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2KG1TO
    In Singapore, premiums of $1.4-$1.8 were charged.
    Retail buying increased due to Chinese New Year gifting
after a slow start this week, said Brian Lan, managing director
at dealer GoldSilver Central in Singapore. 
    Vincent Tie, sales manager at another Singapore dealer,
Silver Bullion said interest in silver remained resilient.  
    Silver has seen an influx of fresh interest, following a
brief spike in spot prices triggered by a retail frenzy last
week, with analysts also betting on a further upside this year
from industrial demand.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2K71WL
    Japanese buyers too bought silver, dealers said. Gold
premiums in Tokyo were around $0.50-$1 an ounce.

 (Reporting by Asha Sistla and Bharat Govind Gautam in
Bengaluru, Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; editing by Arpan Varghese
and Shailesh Kuber)
 ((BharatGovind.Gautam@thomsonreuters.com; +91-80-6182-3021/
3590 (If within U.S. call 651-848-5832 );))