Silver and gold tumbled on Tuesday as investors sold on uncertainty about the direction of monetary policy in the United States, but a softer dollar helped support prices and sentiment.
Spot silver ceded nearly 5% to $44.61 an ounce after touching $49.31 an ounce in New York late on Monday, within reach of $49.48 hit in January 1980
Gold hit a record high of $1,518.10 a troy ounce on Monday. It was last bid at $1,504.61 from $1,508.45 on Monday.
“The rally has been strong, it’s not surprising to see profit-taking ahead of the (US) meeting,” said Peter Fertig, consultant at Quantitative Commodity Research.
Tighter US policy would mean less cash in the financial system looking and fewer worries about inflation, which investors protect against by buying gold.