KUALA LUMPUR: The gold futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives is expected to remain untraded this week amid muted interest, a trader said.

       The market has been unchanged for the whole of last week.

       Phillip Futures Sdn Bhd dealer Lai Wei Fook said for this week, United States Comex gold prices are expected to see range bound trading at between US$1,770 (RM7,487) and US$1,800 (RM7,614) per ounce, with a downside bias until new market catalysts emerge to determine the price direction.

       “Comex gold dropped near a one-month low on Thursday as the United States Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s comments on the need to tame inflation bolstered bets for faster monetary policy tightening and offset Omicron-driven safe-haven inflows into bullion,” he told Bernama.

       On a Friday-to-Friday basis, Bursa Malaysia Derivatives’ gold futures contracts for December 2021, January 2022, February 2022, and March 2022 all remained at RM255.00 a gramme.

       Volume and open interest were nil.

       Meanwhile, the price of physical gold decreased RM5.14 to RM232.80 a gramme on Thursday from RM237.94 a gramme on Friday last week.

       Bursa Malaysia and its subsidiaries was closed on Friday in conjunction with the public holiday for Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan announced by the Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim on Wednesday.

       The public holiday was declared to celebrate Kuala Lumpur City FC’s victory in the Malaysia Cup on Wednesday that ended a 32-year wait to capture the trophy. -- Bernama