RTRS: India gold demand remains slack; traders await falls
MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's gold demand remained slack on Thursday as prices traded above $1,150 an ounce, and as traders sought lower prices to stock up for the ongoing wedding season and festivals, dealers said.
"Buyers simply won't want to get stuck with high cost inventory, demand is weak since prices moved to hover around $1,150 mark," said a dealer with a state-run bank in Mumbai, which deals in bullion.
Gold firmed on Thurday on bargain hunting driven by early gains in the euro, with strong China economic growth underpinning sentiment, while palladium slipped from a two-year high hit the previous day.
International gold, which guides the domestic market, was trading at $1,153.55/1,154.35 an ounce as against the previous close of $1,153.90/1,155.90. It struck a high of $1,158.10 earlier in the session.
"$1,120-1,130 could be good level to enter for them," said another dealer with a private bank in Mumbai.
India's March gold imports jumped nearly six times from a year ago, a trade body head said, as pent-up demand and steady prices since January revived purchases by the world's largest consumer of the precious metal.
Currently, the wedding season is underway in the world's largest consumer of the yellow metal, with gold-buying festivals like Akshaya Tritiya slated in May.