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Informist, Thursday, Mar. 19, 2026

 

By Reshma Ravi

 

MUMBAI – Futures contracts of gold and silver fell sharply on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India and the COMEX on Thursday due to the US Federal Reserve's hawkish stance on rate cuts, analysts said. Policymakers signalled only one rate cut in 2026, reinforcing higher-for-longer rate expectations, they said. Gold prices plunged to a nearly six-week low on both exchanges.

 

At 1730 IST, the most-active April GOLD contract on the MCX was down 4% at INR 147,250 per 10 grams, after slipping to a nearly six-week low of INR 146,757 per 10 grams earlier in the day. The most-active April contract on COMEX was down 4% at $4,692.2 per ounce, after falling to a nearly six-week low of $4,669.4 per ounce.

 

Silver prices fell to a nearly six-week low on the COMEX and to a nearly four-week low on the MCX. At 1733 IST, the most-active May SILVER contract on the MCX was down 7% at INR 230,393 per kilogram, after falling to a nearly four-week low of INR 229,234 per kilogram. The same month contract on the COMEX was down 7% at $70.89 per ounce, after falling to a nearly six-week low of $70.07 per ounce.

 

"Gold and silver prices plunged again and saw a heavy sell-off after the US Fed maintained the status quo on interest rates, and the Fed stance looks more hawkish than expected," Manoj Jain, director of Prithvi Finmart, said in a note. 

 

The US Federal Open Market Committee on Wednesday left the federal funds target range unchanged at 3.50-3.75%, as was widely expected. The committee said the implications of the US-Israel war on Iran for the US economy were uncertain. This is the second consecutive meeting in which the rate-setting panel has held interest rates steady at 3.50–3.75%.

 

In his press remarks following the Fed's decision, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the US central bank would look through the impact of higher oil prices induced by the West Asia conflict if there's more progress this year in bringing down core inflation driven by goods prices. "The Federal Reserve maintained interest rates and signalled that cuts will remain on hold until inflation shows clear signs of easing, reducing gold's appeal as a non-yielding asset," analysts at Kedia Advisory said in a note.

 

Meanwhile, the West Asia conflict, now in its third week, escalated sharply as Israel hit Iran's South Pars gasfield Wednesday – the first reported strike on Iranian energy infrastructure in the current conflict. Iran accused Israel of striking its facilities in the huge South Pars gas field and retaliated by vowing attacks on oil and gas targets throughout the Gulf, firing missiles at Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Qatar said Iranian missile attacks on the Ras Laffan Industrial City, the country's main gas facility, have caused "significant damage". 

 

"Despite escalating geopolitical tensions, including strikes linked to the South Pars Gas Field and attacks on Qatar's LNG facilities, rising oil prices have increased inflation risks, limiting upside in gold prices," analysts said.

 

Additionally, precious metals are expected to remain volatile this week amid volatility in the dollar index, surging crude oil prices and the West Asia conflict, Jain said.  

 

Outlook for the rest of the session:

--MCX gold seen at INR 145,500–INR 149,500 per 10 grams

--COMEX gold seen at $4,680.0–$4,780.0 an ounce

--MCX silver seen at INR 228,000-INR 237,000 per kg

--COMEX silver seen at $67.00-$75.00 an ounce

 

End

 

US$1 = INR 92.63

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

 

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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