Gold prices tumbled on Thursday as the investors were waiting for the outcome of Russia-Ukraine peace talks to be held today. The safe-haven metal was set for its biggest quarterly gain since September 2020 due to an increase in demand for the safe-haven investment instrument over political uncertainties in eastern Europe.

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Spot gold fell 0.6 percent to $1,921.55 an ounce by 0507 GMT, while US gold futures shed 0.7 percent to $1,925. The yellow metal has gained nearly 5 percent so far in the quarter and 0.7 percent in the month.

In the Indian bullion market, MCX gold June contract was trading 0.38 percent lower at Rs 51,577, while silver May contract was down 0.84 percent at Rs 66,840.

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"Gold traders are balancing out with potential for further gains based on geopolitical risk and possibly inflation, and the dangerous outlook for gold holdings with rising interest rates and the net result has once again been that we've returned to the middle of the trading range," Reuters quoted as saying Michael McCarthy, chief strategy officer at Tiger Brokers, Australia.

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Ukrainian forces are preparing for new Russian attacks in the east of the country as Moscow builds up its troops there after suffering setbacks near the capital Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Thursday.

Bullion is considered a safe store of value during times of political and financial uncertainty, and is viewed as a hedge against rising inflation. However, rising interest rates increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding gold.

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Spot silver fell 1% to $24.59 per ounce, but was on course for its best quarterly rise since June 2021. Platinum shed 0.8% to $982.22, although it was set for the biggest quarterly gain since March 2021.

Auto-catalyst metal palladium was down 0.3 percent to $2,259.76, but was on course for its sharpest quarterly jump since September 2020.

"Don't think those (platinum, palladium) are going to be dropping anytime soon, and that goes back to not official sanctions, but companies self-sanctioning themselves. They're scared to start buying Russian commodities because of the retribution on social media," said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

-With agency inputs

(Edited by : Bivekananda Biswas)

First Published:Mar 31, 2022 12:01 PM IST