Gold prices move down slightly; silver recovers

Gold prices turned soft today, down by Rs 40 to Rs 29,530 per 10 gram, owing to slack demand from local jewellers despite a positive global trend.

Silver, however, recovered marginally by Rs 15 per kg on mild offtake from industrial units.

Standard gold (99.5 per cent purity) declined by Rs 40 to close at Rs 29,530 per 10 gram from Thursday's closing level of Rs 29,570.

Pure gold (99.9 per cent purity) also fell by the same amount to close at Rs 29,680 per 10 gram compared to Rs 29,720 earlier.

However, silver (.999 fineness) gained Rs 15 per kg to conclude at Rs 36,715 from Rs 36,700, previously.

Globally, gold prices rose as the dollar came under pressure ahead of a speech by the US Federal Reserve chairman, which could yield clues to the direction of the US monetary policy.

Spot gold was up 0.6 per cent at USD 1,191.41 an ounce at early trade.

Spot silver was up 1.1 per cent at USD 14.62 an ounce.