Gold, silver trade flat; physical demand still muted

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India gold and silver futures traded steady on Friday as pressure from a stronger rupee at home was offset by firm global markets, with physical traders preferring to stay on the sidelines in a seasonally slack demand period.

* At 2.04 p.m, the actively traded gold on the August delivery on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was 0.34 percent lower at 27,670 rupees per 10 grams weighed by a stronger local currency.

* The rupee, which traded stronger tracking gains in most Asian peers, plays an important role in determining the landed cost of the dollar-quoted yellow metal.

* "Demand is very low as there are no weddings...," said S.L. Jain, vice president of All India Sarafa Association, a trade body.

* The festival and wedding season has ended and will re-start in August.

* Gold imports into India, the world's biggest buyer of bullion, have fallen from an average of $135 million in the first half of May to $36 million in the second half of the month, the finance minister said on Wednesday.

* The government does not need to act as of now to further moderate gold imports as the recent steps have already had a considerable impact, a government official said.

* Silver for July delivery was 0.09 percent higher at 43,275 rupees per kilogram.

(Reporting by Siddesh Mayenkar; Editing by Supriya Kurane)