Except gold futures, crude oil, silver and copper futures on the national bourses turned higher on week ended on Friday mainly following the firm trend in the overseas markets. Gold futures on MCX finally settled marginally higher following strong crude oil prices.
Crude oil spot in the US stayed below $120 per barrel on Friday. The bulls came back with a vengeance in the oil market in the last week, as crude oil prices closed above $121 a barrel on Thursday for the first time in two weeks. While the London gold spot was quoted at $825 per ounce. In the last week gold futures closed at their highest level in almost two weeks, lifted by the dollar’s fall against other major currencies and the strength in oil prices amid rekindled fears about the financial sector.
The silver September contracts were up 6.13% to trade at Rs 20,262 per kg over the previous week. Total volume was down to 401 tonne from 507 over the previous week. Open interest was also down from 295 tonnes to 275 tonne.
“Physical demand from India and Middle East countries is expected to rise in the coming months. This can lead to short term supply shortages and a sharp rise in gold and silver prices in coming months,” an analyst from Angel Broking said. The gold October contracts were up marginally by Rs 30 to trade at Rs 11,757 per 10 gram over the previous week. Total volume was 18.8 tonne. Open interest was 10.9 tonne.
“Gold prices can trade between $800 and $850 in coming weeks,” he said.
The crude oil September contracts were up 4.43% to trade at 5,225 per barrel on Friday over the previous week. Total volume was 12.63 lakh barrels while open interest was 9 lakh barrels. The enhanced geopolitical risks associated with Russia’s recent actions could have enormous consequences for energy markets. Copper August contracts were up Rs 11.75 or 3.70% to trade at Rs 336.25 per kg on Friday over the previous week. The open interest was 8,674 tonnes and volume was 19,542 tonne. Copper prices are expected to trade higher on the back of a weakening dollar.