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Informist, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026

 

By Reshma Ravi

 

MUMBAI – Futures contracts of gold fell on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India and the COMEX on Wednesday due to profit booking after prices hit a one-week high in the previous session. Prices also fell as market participants cautiously await key labour market data releases to gauge the US Federal Reserve interest rate trajectory. 

 

Key releases include the US November Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, due later in the day, and the December employment report, due Friday. The data on Friday is expected to show employers added 60,000 workers in December, according to the median estimate of economists polled by Reuters. The unemployment rate is expected to decline to 4.5%, after an unexpected increase to a four-year high of 4.6% in November.

 

At 1749 IST, the most-active February GOLD contract on the MCX was down 1% at INR 137,765 per 10 grams. The most-active February contract on COMEX was down 0.9% at $4,455.4 per ounce.

 

Spot gold of 99.9% purity was traded in the Mumbai market at INR 136,615 per 10 grams, down from INR 136,909 per 10 grams on Tuesday, said Kumar Jain, spokesperson, India Bullion and Jewellers Association.

 

"Prices fell due to profit booking, and it fell as the market cautiously awaits the release of labour market data from the US," said Manoj Jain, director, Prithvi Finmart. However, the fall in prices is limited due to rising expectations of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. "There is a high chance of a rate cut by the US Fed in March," Jain said. Typically, gold performs well in a low-interest-rate environment due to its non-yielding nature.

 

These expectations rose after weak US economic data. The US manufacturing activity declined to a 14-month low in December. The US manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index dropped to 47.9 in December, the lowest level since October 2024, down from 48.2 in November. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the PMI would be little changed at 48.4.    

 

"Fed Governor Stephen Miran said the US central bank would need to cut interest rates by more than a percentage point in 2026, arguing that monetary policy is restraining the economy," SMC Global Securities said in a report.

 

SILVER contracts fell on the MCX and COMEX, tracking gold. At 1750 IST, the most-active March silver contract on the MCX was down 2% at INR 254,495 per kg. The most-active March contract on COMEX was down 2% at $79.21 per ounce. 

 

Outlook for the rest of the session:

--MCX gold seen at INR 136,000 –INR 141,000 per 10 grams

--COMEX gold seen at $4,420.0–$4,540.0 an ounce

--MCX silver seen at INR 252,000-INR 257,000 per kg

--COMEX silver seen at $78.50-$80.00 an ounce

End

 

US$1 = INR 89.88

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

 

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

 

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