NEW DELHI: Gold prices edged marginally lower on Friday, in tandem with global mood, but high inflation kept the downside capped. Analysts believe the global inflation worries will continue to support gold prices in the near term.

Gold futures on MCX were trading lower by 0.23 per cent or Rs 111 at Rs 49,105 per 10 grams. Meanwhile, silver futures were down 0.18 per cent or Rs 120 at Rs 66,845 per kg.

Ravi Singh, Vice President & Head of Research, Share India said that the tone of the Fed was slightly dovish in the last FOMC meet and the US central bank signalled to reduce bond purchase by $15 billlion per month which is not aggressive.

“Gold prices are continuing the bullish trend due to this dovish expectation. We advise investors to keep a buy on dips policy in gold till a clear direction from Fed,” he added.

Meanwhile, in the international market, gold prices were steady as the yellow metal traded off the recent high, pressured by a stronger dollar and firm US bond yields.

Spot gold was steady at $1,860.81 per ounce, after leaping to a five-month peak on Wednesday. US gold futures edged down 0.1 per cent to $1,862.20.

Spot silver rose 0.1 per cent to $25.25 per ounce and was en route to its best week in three. Platinum was little changed at $1,085.52 and was on course for its biggest weekly rise in a month. Palladium rose 0.2 per cent to $2,063.60.

In the spot market, the highest purity gold was sold at Rs 49,351 per 10 grams while silver was priced at Rs 66,594 per kg on Thursday, according to the Indian Bullion and Jewellers Association.

The spot price of gold has jumped more than Rs 1,650 per 10 grams after Diwali so far, whereas Silver has gained about Rs 3,050 per kg during the period under review.

Trading strategy

“We expect gold prices to trade sideways to up for the day with COMEX gold support at $1,840 and resistance at $1,870 per ounce. MCX Gold December support lies at Rs 48,900 and resistance at Rs 49,500 per 10 grams,” said Tapan Patel, Senior Analyst (Commodities), HDFC Securities.