Gold, silver tumble on reduced offtake, weak global cues

Traders said sentiment turned bearish after gold weakened in global markets as reports on US employment, manufacturing and consumer confidence signalled improvement in the world's largest economy, boosting the dollar, hurting demand for bullion.

In Singapore, gold lost 0.5 per cent to USD 1,706.31 an ounce and silver fell by 1 per cent to USD 31.93 an ounce. On the domestic front, gold of 99.9 and 99.5 per cent purity lost Rs 280 each to Rs 31,220 and Rs 31,020 per 10 grams, respectively, while sovereigns remained steady at Rs 25,450 per piece of eight grams.

In line with a general weak trend, silver ready dropped by Rs 750 to Rs 59,500 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs 785 to Rs 59,300 per kg, respectively. However, silver coins continued to be enquired around previous level of Rs 76,000 for buying and Rs 77,000 for selling of 100 pieces.