Gold prices climb amid Iran-Israel clashes, scale intraday high of ₹73,000 at MCX; check rates in metro cities

Gold, which has been rallying since earlier this year amid global headwinds, recorded a fresh spurt following reports that claimed Israel has carried out air strikes in Iran. Spot gold peaked to as high as $2,415 per troy ounce following the reports on April 19, marking a climb of 1.4% as against the previous day’s close.

The yellow metal, however, paired some of the gains and was trading 0.10% higher at $2,383 at 05:56 hours GMT. At India’s Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), gold breached the ₹73,000 per 10-gram mark shortly after the trading session began.

In the first hour of the trading, an intraday high of ₹73,083 was touched at MCX. However, the gains were lost in the subsequent period, and gold was trading almost flat at ₹72,800 at 11:00 am.

Also Read: Citi forecasts gold to touch $3,000 an ounce in 6-18 months

Gold rates in metro cities

• The per 10-gram of 24 karat gold was trading at a retail price of ₹75,681 in Mumbai, up 1.62% as against the previous day’s close.
• In New Delhi, the price stood nearly flat at ₹74,726.
• In Kolkata, the rate was up 0.63% at ₹75,902.
• In Chennai, gold climbed by 1.32% to trade at ₹75,902 in the retail market.
• In Bengaluru, the rate stood at ₹75,534, down 0.05%.

Middle East tensions push gold demand

In the global market, spot gold price peaked to the highest-ever at $2,431.53 an ounce on April 12, as the demand for safe-haven assets shot up in view of Iran planning a military strike on its arch-rival Israel to avenge the fatal attack on its consulate in Syria in the preceding week.

The tensions relatively subsided on April 15, as the Iranian strikes on Israeli soil over the weekend did not result in any fatalities, and caused only a modest damage. Tehran also issued a statement, noting that it has avenged the Israeli assault on its Syrian consulate and does not want to escalate the conflict further.

However, the Israeli retaliatory strikes on Iran, as claimed in the reports today, will increase the demand for safe-haven assets including gold, analysts said.

Rush for safe-haven assets

The gold rally is not only fueled by the geopolitical turmoil. The gold buying spree among central banks around the world, most notably China; and the projection of interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve later this year, have added to the surge.

Citi Research has predicted gold to hit the $3,000 an ounce mark in the period of six to 18 months, it sees the baseline at $2,350 per ounce in 2024. This is higher by 6.8% as compared to its previous forecast.

For 2025, the research firm has increased the baseline to $2,875 per ounce, marking an upward revision of 40%. It further anticipates gold testing and surpassing the $2,500 mark several times in this calendar year.