Gold, silver crash to fresh lows on panic selling, global cues

Gold prices plummeted sharply, hitting nearly 16-month low at the domestic bullion hub today as investors and speculators turned to panic selling in light of crash in the global markets.
Silver, mirroring the overall bearishness mood, was battered even more severely. The white metal plunged to more than four-year low and closed below the key Rs 36,000 per kg mark on the back of massive liquidation.
Standard gold (99.5 purity) slumped by Rs 500 to end at Rs 25,455 per 10 grams from Tuesday's closing level of Rs 25,955.
Pure gold (99.9 purity) tumbled by Rs 505 to end at Rs 25,600 per 10 grams compared to Rs 26,105 previously.

Silver (.999 fineness) tanked by a whopping Rs 1,440 to conclude at Rs 35,360 per kg as against Rs 36,800 yesterday.
The yellow metal's rout in overseas markets has triggered a panic reaction among domestic investors forcing them to unwind heavily, bullion traders said.

In worldwide trade, the shiny metal crumbled under widespread sell-off by investors and gold funds. International prices of the precious metal have broken all key support levels and crashed to their lowest mark since mid-2010.
A strong US dollar, which continued its rally against a basket of currencies in the wake of massive Republican win during the mid-term elections, as well as steady improvement in US economy amid interest rate hike fears led to the gold receiving a severe beating.

Spot gold was bid sharply lower at USD 1,139.50 an ounce during the European morning trade, while silver was bid at USD 15.25 an ounce.