Physical demand for gold was lacklustre in most Asian hubs this week as price dips were not enough to lure in buyers and the Indian retail market saw little activity before a festival season.

Global benchmark prices slipped about 1 per cent on Wednesday, moving between $1,484.16 and $1,511.91 an ounce this week.

In India, the world's second biggest gold market, the fall in domestic prices to their lowest in more than a month failed to lift demand because of the Shradh period, which is considered inauspicious for buying bullion.

“Retail buying was negligible due to Shradh,” said Ashok Jain of Mumbai-based gold wholesaler Chenaji Narsinghji.

Gold futures were trading around ₹37,500per 10 grams on Friday after falling to their lowest level since August 13 earlier in the session.

Dealers were offering a discount of up to $47 an ounce over official domestic prices this week.

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