MUMBAI (Reuters) - Gold futures in India are seen falling this week due to lower domestic demand with investors awaiting the outcome of a U.S. Federal Reserve meeting for directions.
Investors are closely watching the Fed's two-day policy-setting meeting that begins later on Tuesday as a string of healthy U.S. data has increased speculations the bank could scale back its bond-buying programme, hurting gold's appeal as a hedge against inflation.
In an effort to contain gold imports and record current account deficit, the Indian government raised the import duty by a third to 8 percent on June 5, following a ban on consignment imports by the central bank.
The country's gold imports fell from an average of $135 million in the first half of May to $36 million in the second half, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said last week.
"Gold should be broadly down due to lower intake in China and India," said Harish Galipelli, head of commodities and currencies at JRG Wealth Management.
The actively traded gold for August delivery was 0.39 percent higher at 27,977 rupees per 10 gram on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) at 11:43 a.m.
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Selling is advised at 28,200 rupees for a target of 27,550/27,500 rupees, said Galipelli.
Investors will also keep an eye on the rupee's movement for direction. The rupee, which hit a record low on June 11, plays an important role in determining the landed cost of the dollar-quoted yellow metal.
Silver for July delivery on the MCX was 0.53 percent lower at 43,826 rupees per kilogram.
Selling is advised at 44,600 rupees, targeting 43,000 rupees, said Galipelli.
(Reporting by Siddesh Mayenkar; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)