MCX silver hits lower circuit, down 43% from peak; gold slips below ₹1.45 lakh

Gold and silver prices tumbled on Monday, tracking a sharp correction in global bullion markets as a firm US dollar and higher margin requirements on CME metal futures triggered heavy profit-booking.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), April futures contracts opened 1.18 per cent lower at ₹1,46,000 per 10 grams against the previous close of ₹1,47,753. It was last trading around ₹1,46,500, down ₹1,253 or 0.85 per cent. Prices briefly fell below the ₹1.45 lakh mark.

Silver witnessed a steeper correction. MCX March silver futures opened at ₹2,67,501 per kg, lower than the previous close of ₹2,65,652. The metal dropped as much as 9 per cent to hit the lower circuit at ₹2,41,744 per kg. At current levels near ₹2,56,981, silver is down roughly 43 per cent from its recent record high, reflecting intense volatility after last week’s surge.

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In international markets, spot gold fell 3.3 per cent to $4,703.27 an ounce, after sliding more than 5 per cent earlier in the session to its lowest level in over two weeks. The metal had scaled a record high of $5,594.82 last Thursday. US gold futures for April were down 0.3 per cent at $4,729.20 per ounce.

Spot silver plunged 5 per cent to $80.28 an ounce, retreating sharply from its record high of $121.64 touched last week.

The sell-off comes as CME Group announced higher margin requirements for precious metals futures, effective after Monday’s market close, prompting traders to unwind leveraged positions. A stronger dollar further weighed on bullion, reducing the appeal of non-yielding assets such as gold and silver.

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