Gold futures up Rs 127 in line with US trend

Gold on commodity exchange MCX was trading Rs 167 higher at Rs 26,686 per 10 gram in early trades on Friday, in line with the yellow metal's movement on the US-based bourse Comex, where it was trading at $1,230.3 an ounce, up $9.6.
Overseas gold traded higher on Comex as a fall in the US retail sales for the second straight month in January weakened the greenback. A jump in jewellery sales in the US on Valentine’s Day, too boosted sentiment. According to Bloomberg, the demand was set to hit a five-year high.

Back home, there has been a slight pickup in consumer demand as gold price, less VAT, has dipped 5% from a high of Rs 28,187 on January 20 on MCX.

“A fall below Rs 27,000 has resulted in a slight pickup in demand," said Kumar Jain, retail jeweller in Mumbai's gold market Zaveri Bazaar.