Despite no Budget sops, gold zooms on buying; silver also up

Gold rose sharply and reclaimed the key Rs 28,000 per 10 grams mark at the bullion market here today on emergence of frantic buying by stockists and speculators amid strong global sentiment.
Silver too surged and closed above the Rs 46,000 per kg level on the back of heavy industrial demand.
Traders and investors, who were on the sidelines expecting an import duty cut on the yellow metal in the maiden Union Budget of the Modi Government, got into a buying mode, triggering a rally, a trader commented.
Standard gold (99.5 purity) galloped by a whopping Rs 750 to conclude at Rs 28,605 per 10 grams from Wednesday's closing level of Rs 27,855.

Pure gold (99.9 purity) also jumped by a similar margin to end at Rs 28,750 per 10 grams against Rs 28,000.
Silver (.999 fineness) skyrocketed by a massive Rs 1,150 to finish at Rs 46,580 per kilo from Rs 45,430 yesterday.

Globally, the shiny metal rallied on weak dollar as well as bargain hunting after US Fed's minutes of the recent policy meet gave no indication of interest rate hike.
Spot gold was bid higher at USD 1,341 an ounce in early European trade.
Meanwhile, the gems and jewellery sector expressed disappointment over the Budget, which they had hoped would reduce import duty on gold (currently at 10%) and abolish or at least water down the stringent 80:20 norms for import of the yellow metal. None of this was addressed in the Budget.

"The entire industry was waiting for a positive turn of events but feels let down by the Government in its maiden budget," All India Gems and Jewellery Federation (GJF) Chairman Haresh Soni said.