Mumbai, Feb 9 (IANS) Gold and silver prices surged sharply on Monday due to a weaker US dollar and persistent geopolitical uncertainties.

MCX gold February futures jumped 1.31 per cent to Rs 1,57,484 per 10 grams around 10.45 am on an intraday basis. Meanwhile MCX silver March futures climbed 4.81 per cent to Rs 2,61,900 per kg.

On the MCX, silver prices, earlier in the day, had jumped as much as 6 per cent to its day’s high of Rs 2,64,885 per kg before a round of profit booking.

The US dollar touched its lowest level since February 4, making greenback-priced metals cheaper for overseas buyers.

Even as Iran’s top diplomat called US–Iran nuclear talks a “good start” on Friday, Tehran has reiterated that the country would retain its right to enrich uranium. Experts anticipate that geopolitical tensions may persist for longer, continuing to drive investors to safe-haven assets.

Market hopes of further rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve got stronger after San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly called for one or two more interest rate cuts to alleviate weakness in the labour market. US Fed rate cut hopes remain another supporting factor for gold and silver prices, analysts said.

“Gold has support at Rs 1,54,000 and Rs 1,51,8000 zones while resistance at Rs 1,57,700 and Rs 1,60,000. Silver has support at Rs 2,36,600 and Rs 2,44,000 levels while resistance at Rs 2,55,500 and Rs 2,62,600,” an analyst said.

Silver’s sharp surge from Rs 60,000 to Rs 3,20,000 could lead to a phase of consolidation at elevated levels or rebalancing by market participants becomes more likely, according to a recent report.

Structural supply deficits and steady industrial demand continue to underpin the bullish bias in silver. Persistent safe-haven demand, steady central-bank accumulation, and expectations of accommodative global monetary conditions continue to underpin prices of yellow metal, it said.

–IANS

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