Mumbai, Dec 31 (IANS) Precious metals, especially silver, took a breather on the final trading day of the year on Wednesday, after a run‑up to record high followed by aggressive profit‑booking.
Silver futures for March 2026 on MCX tumbled 4.63 per cent to Rs 2,39,395 per kg and gold futures for February 2026 slipped 0.51 per cent to Rs 1,35,973 per 10 grams in morning trade.
Volatility remained elevated amid geopolitical tensions such as US strikes on Venezuela’s dock facilities and Chinese naval exercises that bolstered safe‑haven demand earlier in the week.
The retreat came after sharp gains through most of 2025. Silver has gained 24 per cent in December and 135 per cent year-over-year, reflecting tight supply-demand fundamentals and robust safe-haven flows, said analysts.
Domestic spot gold prices have surged over 76 per cent year‑to‑date and international gold prices over 70 per cent in 2025, on track for their strongest annual performance since 1979.
“Gold and silver prices witnessed sharp volatility on Tuesday, rebounding strongly from intraday lows as rising geopolitical tensions boosted safe-haven demand. Setbacks in the Russia-Ukraine peace process emerged after Russia alleged a Ukrainian drone attack on the President’s residence,” said Rahul Kalantri, VP Commodities, Mehta Equities Ltd.
Meanwhile, US strikes on Venezuela’s dock facilities and Chinese naval exercises heightened US–Taiwan tensions, further supporting precious metals. However, gains were capped after the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting minutes reduced expectations of aggressive rate cuts next year, Kalantri said.
Silver has support at Rs 2,45,150-Rs 2,42,780 while resistance at Rs 2,54,810-Rs 2,56,970 zones, he added.
Aggressive central bank buying, expectations of US Fed rate cuts, concerns over impact of US tariffs, geopolitical tensions, and robust inflows into gold and silver ETFs drove the gold and silver prices this year.
A recent report from Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd. said that persistent inventory drawdowns across key global hubs, weakening arbitrage between Shanghai and COMEX, and repeated delivery pressures have exposed the limited availability of deliverable silver.
—IANS
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