Gold prices hit three-month high

Gold was on an upswing again with the precious metal's prices surgingto a three-month high on Saturday.

In the national capital, price for 24 carat gold was hovering around Rs.27,300 per 10 grams and price for 22 carat was around Rs.26,900 per 10 grams.

"With the price rising, there is less footfall in the stores. People are expecting that prices will fall further. But it seems gold is really on a upswing now," P.P. Jewellers director Rahul Gupta told IANS.

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York mercantile exchange rose on Friday on a weaker US dollar and lower equities. The most active gold contract for December delivery rose $6.4 (0.55 percent) to settle at $1,159.60 per ounce, reported Xinhua news agency.

For the week, gold futures climbed 4.21 percent, their largest weekly gain since the week ended on January 16 this year.

Gold was given support as US equities fell as did the US dollar index, which is a measure of the dollar against a basket of major currencies.

Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, which means if the dollar goes up, gold futures will fall as gold, measured by the dollar, becomes more expensive for investors.

The weak equities and weaker dollar are influenced by the US central bank's strong hints that the federal reserve interest rate will not be raised in September.