Rate Hike Bets Hammer Gold, Silver ETFs

Gold and silver exchange-traded funds (ETFs) took a hit on Monday as investors bet on a rate hike by the Federal Reserve. The strong US jobs data reinforced expectations of higher interest rates, leading to profit booking in trade.

The ICICI Prudential Gold ETF fell 1.7 percent, while the SBI Gold ETF declined 1.72 percent and Nippon India ETF Gold BeES dropped 1.6 percent. Tata Gold ETF was down 1.54 percent.

A similar fall was seen in silver ETFs, with Nippon India Silver ETF dropping 1.56 percent, Tata Silver ETF declining 1.55 percent, and ICICI Prudential Silver ETF slipping 1.45 percent.