Peak: Gold, silver set new record highs

Gold prices closed at Rs42,342 per 10 grams, while silver prices rose Rs1,405.71 per 10 grams.

KARACHI: Gold prices created history once again on Saturday as they rose sharply by Rs685 to close at Rs42,342 per 10 grams. The per tola (11.7 grams) rates of bullion also breached the Rs49,000 barrier, rising by Rs800 to close at Rs49,400.

All Pakistan Supreme Council of Jewellers Association President Haroon Rashid Chand said that next week per tola rates may cross Rs50,000, a level he had not expected to arrive this early. “The international market is on fire now,” he said. “All sorts of metals - gold, silver, platinum, palladium, etc are hitting lifetime highs. This is not a good sign,” the gold expert said, explaining that rising precious metal rates reflected a weakening global economy.

In the international bullion market, gold rates spiralled by $26 to close at $1,563 an ounce over the weekend. Silver, meanwhile, surged to $49.17 an ounce, also a record, climbing from $10 in just30 months. In the local market, silver prices rose above Rs1,400 to a new lifetime best at Rs1,405.71 per 10 grams.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1^st, 2011.