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Informist, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026

MUMBAI – Spot gold prices rose Wednesday, tracking futures contracts on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India and the COMEX. Prices on the exchanges rose due to safe-haven demand amid escalation in geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran. The US shot down an Iranian drone near one of its aircraft carriers on Tuesday, stoking tensions between the two oil producers. 

Gold prices also found support as market participants braced for lack of key economic data this week amid a partial US government shutdown. On Monday, the US Bureau of Labor said that the January employment report would not be released on Friday due to the partial shutdown of the federal government, Reuters reported. The US government partially shut down on Saturday after Congress failed to approve a deal to keep several federal agencies, including the Labor Department, funded. The US Senate passed a spending package on Friday. 

In the Mumbai spot market, the price of gold of 99.9% purity was INR 158,158 per 10 grams, higher than INR 150,708 per 10 grams Tuesday, said Kumar Jain, spokesperson for the India Bullion and Jewellers Association. Gold was trading at a premium of INR 5,000 per 10 grams of gold, Jain said. 

Meanwhile, strong investment interest was evident globally, with gold holdings in London vaults rising 2.24% month-on-month and Switzerland reporting a 27% jump in gold exports in December, driven by strong flows to the UK, Amit Gupta, senior research analyst at Kedia Advisory said in a note. Official sector demand remains a major pillar of support. Poland emerged as the largest central bank buyer in 2025, while China's central bank extended its gold-buying streak to 14 months, underscoring sustained diversification away from the dollar, according to World Gold Council.

Physical market premiums surged in India and China, pointing to strong investment and jewellery demand despite record global prices. Spot gold prices saw a strong rally, tracking gains in futures due to tensions in West Asia. "The rally was supported by a softer dollar and aggressive dip-buying following a brutal sell-off that had pushed prices nearly 20% below record highs," Kaynat Chainwala, AVP commodity research, Kotak Securities, said in a note.

This follows the strong rebound on Tuesday, when spot gold jumped more than 6% to settle above $4,945 per ounce, its largest single-day gain since November 2008, according to Kotak Securities.  End

Reported by Taniva Singha Roy

Edited by Avishek Dutta

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