Kathmandu, September 1

The price of precious metals went up in the trading week between August 26 and 31 owing to the rise in oil prices and depreciation of the Indian currency against which the Nepali rupee is pegged, as per the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association (FeNeGoSiDA).

As per the price rate of FeNeGoSiDA, gold was traded at Rs 56,600 per tola when the market opened on Sunday and its price was unchanged the next day. On Tuesday, bullion price rose by Rs 200 a tola to Rs 56,800 per tola and was steady on Wednesday. The price of the precious yellow metal continued uphill over the next two days — by Rs 200 a tola to Rs 57,000 per tola on Thursday and by Rs 300 a tola to Rs 57,300 per tola on Friday.

As per the federation, silver was priced at Rs 720 a tola on Sunday and was traded at the same rate on Monday. On Tuesday, the price of the grey metal went up by five rupees per tola to Rs 725 a tola and was unchanged for the rest of the week.

In neighbouring India, physical gold demand was moderate during the week amid an improvement in retail purchases before the festival season despite an increase in domestic prices, while top consumer China saw a slight uptick in activity.

Demand in India is expected to pick up further in the festival season beginning in September, when buying gold is considered auspicious.

But jewellers who had been aggressively replenishing stocks as prices fell in August were now slowing their purchases,

according to Reuters.

In China, premiums were around $6 to $7 an ounce this week, versus the $6 to $8 range last week, amid currency fluctuations, traders said.

Elsewhere, gold rose on Friday as the dollar steadied and investors grew jittery about an escalation in the US-China trade dispute after fresh threats by US President Donald Trump.

Trump is prepared to ramp up a trade war with China and has told aides he is ready to impose tariffs on $200 billion more in Chinese imports as soon as a public comment period on the plan ends next week, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

A lower US currency makes dollar-priced gold cheaper for holders of other currencies and would potentially boost

demand. This is a relationship used by funds to generate buy and sell signals.

However, the prospect of higher US interest rates next month and again before the end of the year is a negative.