Gold prices today rise to near record high, silver rates jump

Gold and silver prices edged higher today on MCX commodity exchange, tracking positive global cues. MCX is holding a special trading Budget day session today. On MCX, April gold futures rose 0.17% to ₹41,120 per 10 gram, edging closing to record high of ₹41,293, hit earlier this month. Tracking gold, silver futures on MCX also edged higher byu 0.2% to ₹47,075 per kg. In global markets, gold prices on CME surged to $1,588 per ounce on Friday as worries about global growth due to fast-spreading coronavirus boosted appetite for safe havens.

The World Health Organization declared the epidemic a global emergency. The US declared a public health emergency in response to the outbreak, ordering citizens returning from the Hubei province at the center of the outbreak be quarantined for as long as 14 days.

Silver futures on CME also surged to $18.030 an ounce.

The virus fears has also gripped financial markets. Overnight, on Wall Street the Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped over 600 points and the S&P 500 index erased its gains for January.

In its latest update, China said the number of coronavirus cases topped 11,700 while the death toll has crosses 250.

Abhishek Bansal, chairman and managing director of Abans Group, said it is premature to predict the actual impact of the coronavirus.

But if there is an an escalation in the situation from the current levels, "then a significant rally could be seen in gold prices, which are considered as a safe-haven during such a scenario. Many cities in China are still facing a lockdown, and business activities are closed completely. Gold is considered a safe-haven during such situations," he said.

Gold is continuing to find favour as a traditional safe haven and, at the same time, run into strong resistance on the run-up to $1,600, which is keeping a lid on gains," OANDA analyst Craig Erlam said in a note.

Back in India, all eyes are on the Union Budget 2020 which will be presented later in the day. Last year, the government had increased import duty on gold to 12.5% from 10%. India imports bulk of its gold requirement and prices include 3% GST and 12.5% import duty. (With Agency Inputs)