Gold prices fell over ₹1000 per 10 gram in minutes after Pfizer Inc announced that its experimental covid vaccine was more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 based on initial data from a large study.
Pfizer and German partner BioNTech SE are the first drugmakers to show successful data from a large-scale clinical trial of a coronavirus vaccine. On MCX, December gold futures were down 2% or over ₹1,000 to ₹51165.00 per 10 gram while silver futures slumped 3.5% or ₹2205 to ₹63,130 per kg.
So far during today’s session, gold traded in the range of ₹50677 to ₹52520 on MCX. In global markets, spot gold fell over 2% to $1,909.99 per ounce. The companies said they have found no serious safety concerns so far, and expect to seek U.S. emergency use authorization later this month.
“Today is a great day for both science and humanity, as the first set of results from our Phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trial provides compelling evidence of our vaccine’s ability to help prevent COVID-19,” Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said in a tweet.
The announcement delivers the clearest sign yet that scientists are making progress in developing a vaccine that could end the pandemic. Investors responded by piling into risk assets and dumping havens. The risk sentiment improved with futures tracking the S&P 500 hit a record high today.
S&P 500 futures soared 3.78%, while Dow contracts jumped 4.69% in response, almost doubling the day’s gains. Nasdaq 100 E-minis gained 2%. Gold suffered a sudden drop after Pfizer announced vaccine results
“But we have do have to be careful that the number of patients reporting results are still very low. So we need to be perhaps cautiously optimistic about this news and look at a lot more results. The results have not been peer reviewed yet but it is positive. They (Pfizer) are also upping their production forecasts and that is positive.”
Earlier in the day, gold prices rose today, helped by overall weakness in the dollar and expectations for increased economic support following Joe Biden’s victory in the U.S. presidential election.
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