NEW DELHI : Gold prices in India’s futures trade eased during late trade Friday as physical buying declined owing to higher prices.
The most traded June contract was seen trading at Rs 14,644 per ten gram at 4.30 p.m, eased from an earlier high of Rs 14,726 per ten gram while August contract was at Rs 14,657 per ten gram at the same time.
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Earlier gold prices advanced in the trade mainly after China revealed its huge gold reserve rise. Gold prices have risen about 3.7 percent in the past three weeks.
Analysts said a strong rupee, which makes the dollar denominated asset cheaper, kept a lid on gains.
However on the global scene, bullion surged to a three-week high on Friday, boosted by the prospect of further purchases by China, after the country revealed it had been buying the precious metal since 2003.
Spot gold was at $909.75 an ounce in early European trade Friday from $902 late in New York on Thursday.
China has raised its gold reserves by three-quarters since 2003 to 1,054 tones, confirming speculation that it had been buying in the market for some years.
China's reserves are now the fifth biggest in the world, with only six countries holding more than 1,000 tones.
China's news overshadowed a rise in equity markets, which in recent weeks has dampened investor enthusiasm for gold, seen in the holdings by the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the SPDR Gold Trust.
SPDR's gold holdings fell to 1,104.45 tones as of April 23, down 1.53 tones or 0.1 percent from the previous day, extending a decline that began last week in the biggest unwinding of positions seen since September.
