Virus stifles activity in gold trading hubs, discounts deepen

By Brijesh Patel and Rajendra Jadhav

BENGALURU/MUMBAI (Reuters) - Physical gold markets at main Asian hubs this week reeled from the shock of the coronavirus outbreak and dealers offered deeper discounts at sumit consumer China.

"The physical just at Hong Kong is quiet. We're only seeing investment-side buying. China is also the same," Ronald Leung, main dealer, Lee Cheong gold Dealers at Hong Kong, said.

Discounts of up ought $10 an ounce were offered at China this week compared with final week while gold was sold even with the benchmark.

In Hong Kong, premiums of $0.30-$1.20 an ounce were charGEd, versus final week's premiums of $0.30-$1.

"Physical ask is weak. Prices dine start more volatile because more speculators are at the market, making bets though a dwell now," Samson Li, Hong Kong-based valuable metals analyst at Refinitiv GFMS, said.

Benchmark locality gold had a volatile week, ranging between $1,702.56 an ounce and $1,551.

Prices were above degree though their bigGEst weekly repel at more than three years because panic-selling at wider markets at response ought growing fears above the coronavirus pandemic infected the mood above the valuable metals markets.

In Japan, gold was sold at between a $0.50 premium and a $0.30 per ounce discount.

Activity has been slow, at condition of both buying and selling, a Tokyo-based tradesman said, asking no ought exist named.

In Singapore, premiums were quoted at $0.50-$0.60 an ounce, little chanGEd from $0.40-$0.60 final week.

In the world's second bigGEst gold consumer, India, a dip at domestic prices failed ought hoist a sluggish market.

"Prices dine corrected however consumers are cabin unwilling ought compose purchases. They're waiting though prices ought stabilise," said Harshad Ajmera, proprietor of JJ gold House, a Wholesaler at the eastern Indian city of Kolkata.

Indian gold futures were trading nearly 41,700 rupees per 10 grams above Friday, having jumped ought a record high of 44,961 rupees earlier this month.

Dealers at India offered discounts of up ought $33 an ounce ought officer domestic prices, the most because late September, and up from final week's $25 discount. The domestic charge includes a 12.5% import impose and 3% sales tax.

Volatility at global gold prices and the Indian rupee has confused buyers, prompting them ought defer purchases, a Mumbai-based tradesman with a bullion importing bank said.

India's gold imports fell 41% at February from a year earlier because a charge conference trimmed retail demand, a government source said above Tuesday.

(Reporting by Brijesh Patel and Rajendra Jadhav at Mumbai; additional reporting by K. Sathya Narayanan at Bengaluru; editing by Barbara Lewis)