The Azadi gold coin rose for the third consecutive day on Tuesday, diverging from gold’s decline in the international arena.
Azadi advanced 0.51 percent to 9,800,000 rials by 13:09 on Tuesday. Demand for gold coins is also rising as Iran approaches Nowruz festivities on March 21.
Gold slid below $1,200 an ounce on Tuesday as relief that Greece had submitted reform plans to its international partners, boosted appetite for assets viewed as higher-risk, such as stocks.
Strength in the dollar ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen’s Senate testimony added to pressure on gold. Investors are awaiting her comments for clues on the timing of the first US interest rate rise in nearly a decade, expected later this year.
Bullion for immediate delivery was down 0.18 percent at $1,199.60 an ounce at 13:09 GMT, while US gold futures for April delivery fell $1.50 an ounce to $1,199.30. Spot gold hit a low of 1194.53 earlier in the day.
“Hope that there will be an agreement, and that the list of reforms that Greece presented overnight is sufficient to meet the demand of the Eurogroup, is (pressuring) gold, coupled with the firmer dollar,” Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann told Reuters.
