Silver slides Rs 4,275 to Rs 2.75 lakh/kg
New Delhi (PTI): Silver price declined by Rs 4,275 to Rs 2.75 lakh per kilogram in the national capital on Wednesday, while gold gained Rs 900 to Rs 1.65 lakh per 10 grams amid geopolitical tensions in West Asia.
According to the All India Sarafa Association, the white metal plunged by Rs 4,275, or 1.53 per cent, to Rs 2,75,000 per kilogram (inclusive of all taxes) from Tuesday's closing level of Rs 2,79,275 per kg.
However, gold moved higher, with 99.9 per cent purity increasing by Rs 900, or 0.54 per cent, to Rs 1,65,600 per 10 grams (inclusive of all taxes). The yellow metal had settled at Rs 1,64,700 per 10 grams in the previous market session.
Analysts said renewed safe-haven demand amid intensifying geopolitical tensions supported gold prices, even as silver came under pressure.
"Gold traded with a positive bias on Wednesday supported by renewed safe-haven demand amid escalating tensions in the Iran conflict and heightened geopolitical uncertainty," Saumil Gandhi, Senior Analyst of Commodities at HDFC Securities, said.
He added that the ongoing escalation will continue to act as a tailwind for traditional safe-haven assets like gold.
However, bullion was trading lower in the overseas trade. Spot gold was marginally down at USD 5,189.05 per ounce, and silver slipped USD 1.59, or 1.8 per cent, to USD 86.69 per ounce.
"Gold prices remained under pressure on Wednesday, easing despite elevated geopolitical tensions, as broader macroeconomic factors continued to outweigh safe-haven demand," Kaveri More, Commodity Analyst at Choice Broking, said.
She noted that rising market uncertainty, reflected in an uptick in the CBOE Volatility Index, has encouraged investors to maintain higher cash positions rather than aggressively accumulate bullion.
"A global equity sell-off triggered by surging oil prices and persistent Middle East tensions has added volatility across asset classes but failed to provide sustained support to gold," More said.
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LPG crisis: Karnataka temples gear up to stock wooden logs for ‘Prasada’
Bengaluru (PTI): Temples in Karnataka have started preparations to stock wooden logs fearing that the LPG shortage could hamper the ‘Prasada’ preparation and distributions to the devotees.
The looming LPG crisis in the state in the wake of Iran-Israel conflict has made the temple managements jittery.
According to the Akhila Karnataka Hindu Temple Archakas Federation (AKHTAF) president M S Venkatachalaiah, there is no immediate crisis in the temples.
“We have LPG cylinder stock that can last for a week but if this scarcity continues then there will be a problem in serving Prasada (offerings to the deity) to the devotees,” AKHTAF president said.
He added that many temples in the state have started stocking wooden logs to overcome the LPG crisis.
“Our temples have started preparing to store wooden logs to prepare Prasada though currently we don’t have a problem, at least for a week,” Venkatachalaiah told PTI.
Another priest working in a temple belonging to the state Endowment Department said the temples may have to go back to the traditional way of cooking as done in the ancient time using wood.
The LPG crisis has not affected the mid-day meal programme for government school students yet, though there was a meeting in the Education Department to find ways to tackle if crisis deepens, sources associated with the Mid-day Meal programme said.
Meanwhile, the largest partner of the Mid-day Meal programme in the country is Akshaya Patra.
The NGO said they do not depend much on LPG gas cylinder.
“The LPG crisis has not affected us. Our kitchens are steam-based, and we generate steam through boilers which run on electricity. That’s point number one. Point number two—gas is used only for very minor things, mainly for seasoning. That is the tadka,” an Akshaya Patra executive told PTI.
According to him, the NGO has has a gas reserves for about nearly one month across India, though gas is used in very small quantities every day.
He pointed out that the Mid-day meal programme will not be affected because in one or one-and-a-half weeks, schools will close owing to summer vacation.
Akshaya Patra feeds 23.5 lakh children across more than 24,000 schools across India, in 16 states and three Union Territories, he said.
