Gold loses sheen, silver plunges below Rs 36,000

Falling for the tenth straight day, gold prices cracked below the Rs 28,000-mark by losing another Rs 390 per 10 grams at the bullion market on the back of weak overseas cues amid muted demand from local jewellers.

Silver also dropped below the crucial Rs 36,000-mark by tumbling Rs 1,220 per kg on reduced offtake by industrial units.

Standard gold (99.5 purity) dropped by Rs 390 to conclude at Rs 27,695 per 10 grams from last Friday's closing level of Rs 28,085.

Pure gold (99.9 purity) also shed by a similar margin to end at Rs 27,845 per 10 grams as compared to Rs 28,235 earlier.

Silver (.999 fineness) slumped by Rs 1,220 to finish at Rs 35,690 per kg from Rs 36,910 previously.

Globally, gold prices continued to move lower, setting them on track for a fresh four-month low after a solid US jobs report last week backed expectations for higher US interest rates later in the year.

At early trade, gold for August dropped $2.40, or 0.2 per cent, to $1,207.30 an ounce, on a path for a second straight day of losses.

While, silver for September slid 1.2 per cent to USD 15.25 an ounce, adding to a 3.5 per cent loss on Friday.