Silver prices slipped around 2% on Monday, March 16 even as the dollar softened, with bullion caught between two competing forces. On one hand, a weaker greenback and lower US Treasury yields offered some support to precious metals. On the other, stubbornly high oil prices kept inflation worries alive, which in turn reduced expectations of any near-term interest-rate cuts from the US Federal Reserve.
That tension left precious struggling for direction ahead of the Fed’s policy announcement due on Wednesday, where policymakers were widely expected to keep rates unchanged for a second straight meeting. With borrowing costs likely to stay elevated for longer, investor appetite for non-yielding assets such as gold remained under pressure.
MCX Silver rate fell 1.95% to ₹2,54,367 per kg while MCX Gold lost 1% to ₹1,56,655 per 10 gram
Spot silver rose 0.4% to $80.88 an ounce, suggesting some resilience in the broader metals complex even as gold remained range-bound.
Still, the downside in bullion was limited because the broader market backdrop remained highly uncertain. Spot gold stood at $5,017.53 an ounce as of 0101 GMT, while US gold futures for April delivery declined 0.8% to $5,020.90. During the session, bullion moved on both sides of the $5,000 mark, falling as much as 1 percent before recovering some of those losses. That reflected how investors were weighing the metal’s safe-haven appeal against the drag from higher rate expectations.
The same crosscurrents were visible across other precious metals. Platinum gained 0.9% to $2,049.50, while palladium added 0.3% to $1,556.50.
