Kathmandu, January 2

The price of gold dropped, while that of silver remained constant in the week of December 27 to January 1.

The precious yellow metal was traded at Rs 48,300 per tola on Sunday. Its price remained the same until Wednesday. On Thursday, gold price dropped by Rs 300 a tola to be traded at Rs 48,000 per tola. The yellow metal was traded at the same rate on Friday.

The gold price in the domestic market, which is influenced by the price in the

international market, has dropped in the recent months. The year 2016 is expected to be another potentially challenging year amid the prospect of higher US interest rates and a robust dollar.

Largely influenced by US monetary

policy and dollar flows, price of gold in international market fell 10 per cent in 2015 as some investors sold the precious metal to buy assets that pay a yield, such as equities, as per a recent report by Reuters.

“The key factor for gold remains the strong dollar and that ultimately trumps all other issues including the economy and the geopolitics,” Reuters had quoted Ross Norman, chief executive of bullion broker Sharps Pixley, as saying.

The dollar is on track for a nine per cent gain this year against a basket of major currencies, making dollar-denominated gold more expensive for holders of other currencies. The price of silver in the

domestic market, meanwhile, remained the same throughout the review period — Rs 675 per tola.

Other precious metals have also been hit by dollar strength and the gold slump, and are headed for sharp annual declines, according to various media reports.