Gold, silver slump on weak global cues

Falling for the second straight session, gold prices slipped by Rs 50 per 10 grams at the bullion market here today amid a weak global trend and tepid demand from local jewellers.
Silver also drifted lower by Rs 295 per kg on reduced offtake by industrial units.
Standard gold (99.5 purity) slipped by Rs 50 to end at Rs 29,350 per 10 grams from its overnight closing of Rs 29,400.
Pure gold (99.9 purity) also fell by a similar margin to end at Rs 29,500 per 10 grams as compared to Rs 29,550 earlier.
Silver (.999 fineness) declined by Rs 295 per kg to settle at Rs 42,555 from Tuesday's finish of Rs 42,850.

Globally, gold edged lower as the dollar gained, but escalating tensions over North Korea and upcoming French and UK elections boosted investor demand in the safe-haven asset.
Spot gold was down 0.64 per cent at USD 1,281.96 per ounce at early trade, but holding near a November high of USD 1,295.42 touched on Monday.
Spot silver dropped 0.6 per cent to USD 18.14 per ounce.