NEW DELHI: Bullion counters edged higher in early Tuesday trade to trade at record highs as spiking Covid-19 cases and low interest rate situation encouraged investor’s to move towards safe haven counters.
Meanwhile, a World Health Organization warning that there might never be a "silver bullet" for Covid-19 in the form of a perfect vaccine and that the road to normality would be long too sparked rush towards the yellow metal.
Gold tends to gain when interest rates are low, which reduces the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion. It is also seen as a hedge against inflation and uncertainty.
Gold futures on MCX were up 0.19 per cent or Rs 103 at Rs 53,820 per 10 grams after scaling fresh record high of Rs 53,865. Silver futures added 0.18 per cent or Rs 117 to Rs 65,865 per kg.
Gold prices rose by Rs 185 to Rs 54,678 per 10 gram in the national capital on Monday amid rupee depreciation, according to HDFC Securities. Silver also jumped Rs 1,672 to Rs 66,742 per kg.
Globally, gold prices held steady near record highs on Tuesday as worries over the global economic fallout from mounting COVID-19 cases offset pressure from a rebound in the U.S. dollar.
Spot gold was steady at $1,976.36 per ounce by 0231 GMT, $8.30 shy of the all-time high hit in the previous session. US gold futures rose 0.3 per cent to $1,993.
Holding back the metal from rising, the dollar index rose 0.1 per cent against its rivals, crawling further away from a more than two-year low hit last week. A stronger greenback makes gold more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Silver gained 0.2 per cent to $24.29 per ounce, platinum rose 0.2 per cent to $918.19 and palladium climbed 0.6 per cent to $2,096.56.