Gold falls by Rs 600, silver unchanged; yellow metal trading at Rs 54,220

Gold prices witnessed a drop of Rs 600 in early trade on Saturday with ten grams of yellow metal (24-carat) trading at Rs 54,220. Silver prices, on the other hand, remained unchanged and the precious metal was selling at Rs 70,100 per kg.

Ten gram of 22-carat gold was selling at Rs 49,700 after the price fell by Rs 550 from yesterday's close, according to the GoodReturns website.

In Mumbai, Kolkata, and Hyderabad, 10 gram of 24-carat and 22-carat gold was selling at Rs 54,220 and Rs 49,700, respectively. 

In Delhi, 10 gram of 24-carat and 22-carat gold traded at Rs 54,380 and Rs 49,850 respectively. In Chennai, ten gram of 24-carat and 22-carat gold was selling at Rs 55,290 and Rs 50,690 respectively.

Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,796.53 per ounce by 2:22 p.m. ET (1922 GMT), while U.S. gold futures settled up 0.5% at $1,804.2.

Gold was up about 0.2% for the week, its best in three.

US consumer spending, edged up 0.1% in November after climbing 0.4% in October, while inflation cooled further.

With inflation close to being in line with expectations, gold prices were higher on fresh speculative buying ahead of the new year on bets that the bigger funds might move to the long side of gold at the beginning of the year, said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco Metals.

Bullion prices dipped over 1% on Thursday after U.S. GDP data highlighted the country's economy rebounded faster than previously estimated, potentially setting the Fed on a keener path to fight inflation.

While gold is seen as an inflation hedge, rate hikes weigh on the non-interest bearing bullion.

Gold prices are on track for a second consecutive yearly decline, falling nearly 2%.

In Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata, one kg of silver is currently trading at Rs 70,100, whereas, 1 kg of silver is selling at Rs 73,700 in Chennai. 

Spot silver rose 0.6% to $23.70 per ounce, platinum jumped 4.3% to $1,019.72, and palladium was up 3.6% to $1,741.75. All three are set for weekly gains.

(WIth Reuters inputs)