The gains came after silver prices rose for a third straight session. MCX silver jumped Rs 13,000 per kg to Rs 2,45,158, supported by a weaker dollar and efforts by the U.S. Treasury Department to keep longer-term yields under control. The U.S. dollar was headed for a weekly decline, making dollar-priced commodities more affordable for holders of other currencies.

On the global stage, Hindustan Zinc ranks among the leading silver producers, with annual output of 22.5 million ounces — ahead of Grupo Mexico’s 12.1 million ounces and not far from top players such as Fresnillo at 52.5 million ounces and Newmont at 28 million ounces. The company also operates in the lowest quartile of the global zinc cost curve and has a mine life of about 25 years.

Silver may have lost some of its shine after a stellar run earlier this year, but the white metal continues to lead all major asset classes on a five-year annualised return basis. Despite investors booking profits after silver surged to $122 in January amid soaring oil prices and renewed concerns over interest rate hikes, the metal has delivered a five-year CAGR of 27%.

Will silver bounce back again?

Fundamentally, silver continues to enjoy strong tailwinds. Demand from sectors such as solar energy, electric vehicles and electronics remains robust, while supply-side constraints support its constructive medium- to long-term outlook. That said, its higher volatility cannot be ignored. Experts suggest a staggered accumulation strategy may be more prudent, allowing investors to balance its higher return potential with the need for risk management.

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“We reiterate investing in silver over supportive fundamentals and market uncertainties. Any decline in prices due to a dollar rally or easing of tensions provides an opportunity to accumulate or invest in silver,” Tata Mutual Fund said in a report.
The report added that corrections after a sharp and extended rally are natural and do not weaken the long-term bullish outlook for precious metals. In silver’s case, the structural fundamentals remain firmly in place despite the recent pullback.

Hindustan Zinc Q1

The Vedanta Group company reported a 145% year-on-year (YoY) surge in net profit to Rs 5,469 crore for the first quarter of FY27.

Its revenue from operations rose around 77% YoY to Rs 13,747 crore during the quarter under review, from Rs 7,771 crore reported in the same period last year. Total expenses increased by over 33% YoY to Rs 6,749 crore during the quarter, which ended on June 30, 2026.

The Vedanta Group company’s net profit margin improved to 40% in the April-June quarter of FY27, from 37% in the previous quarter (Q4 FY26) and 29% in the year-ago period (Q1 FY26). Operating margin, meanwhile, increased to 52% during the quarter under review.

The metal major’s net worth also more than doubled year on year, rising around 108% to Rs 23,587 crore at the end of the June quarter of FY27. Its debt-to-equity ratio stood at 0.32 times, as against 1.19 times in Q1 FY26.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

The 177% move in the stock was the Moderna’s largest increase on record and the biggest gain for any stock in the S&P 500 Index in the last 25 years, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

LONDON — Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, surprised the world this week with news that they plan to move back to the United Kingdom more than six years after stepping away from their senior royal roles and settling in Montecito, California.

According to the BBC, the decision was made relatively recently, with King Charles III only informed of the couple’s plans on Sunday, Aug. 16. A source familiar with the matter told NBC News that Charles “welcomes the opportunity” to see more of the Sussex family in a private and personal capacity. According to The Telegraph, which first reported the move, the couple’s children, 7-year-old Archie and 5-year-old Lilibet, are set to begin the school year in the U.K. this September.

The location of the family’s new home is being closely guarded, though multiple outlets, including ABC News and CNN, report the family intends to settle in a private, non-royal residence outside London rather than returning to any official royal property. NewsNation similarly reported the family will be staying in a non-royal home, with its precise location undisclosed.

Crucially, the move does not signal any return to official royal duties. A source told ABC News that Charles has made clear there will be no alteration to Harry and Meghan’s status as private individuals and non-working royals, consistent with the arrangement the couple themselves requested when they stepped back in 2020. CNN reported the same assurance, noting the king has been explicit that the Sussexes will remain non-working members of the family. The couple will reportedly continue their professional ventures from the U.K., including Harry and Meghan’s production work through Archewell and Meghan’s separate lifestyle brand.

The announcement follows a significant family reunion earlier this summer. Charles and Camilla, Queen Consort, met with Harry, Meghan, Archie and Lilibet during a visit to the U.K. in July, according to a royal source who confirmed the meeting to ABC News. That gathering marked the first time Charles and Camilla were known to have seen Meghan and their grandchildren since 2022. Notably, the Sussexes were not known to have seen Prince William, Catherine, the Princess of Wales, or their three children during that visit. According to The Telegraph, as cited by NBC News’ Today, Harry and Meghan’s decision to relocate was not actually discussed during that July visit itself, meaning the substance of the move appears to have been finalized separately and communicated to the king only days before this week’s public announcement.

Sky News royal reporter Laura Bundock told Variety that the July trip appeared to represent a meaningful turning point in the family’s relationships. “I think they had a really good trip here in the summer,” Bundock said, noting that the visit had also included time with relatives connected to Harry’s late mother, Princess Diana, some of whom Archie and Lilibet were meeting for the first time.

The relationship between Harry and his brother, William, remains a considerably more complicated matter. According to Variety, the bond between the two brothers has been described as severely damaged following the 2023 publication of Harry’s memoir, “Spare,” and the couple’s bombshell 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, in which they leveled allegations of racism and mistreatment against unnamed members of the royal family. Bundock offered a cautious assessment of what the move back to Britain might mean for that specific relationship. “Their friendship circles and acquaintances overlap to some extent,” she said, “but I think to say that this is a moment of great reconciliation between those feuding brothers is far from reality.” A royal insider separately told NewsNation weeks earlier that William has “no interest at all” in speaking to his brother.

Harry’s efforts to rebuild his relationship specifically with his father have followed a somewhat different trajectory. King Charles announced his cancer diagnosis in February 2024, a development that has periodically factored into discussions about reconciliation between father and son. In September 2025, the two reunited for the first time in 19 months. Harry addressed his hopes for reconciliation directly in a May 2025 interview with the BBC. “I would love reconciliation with my family,” Harry said at the time. “There’s no point in continuing to fight. Life is precious. I don’t know how much longer my father has. It would be nice to reconcile.”

Following the family’s July trip, Meghan shared photographs from their time overseas, including images from a visit to Princess Diana’s childhood home, offering a rare public glimpse into the family’s time together during what has since been described by royal watchers as a pivotal visit ahead of this week’s relocation announcement.

The couple’s return marks a striking reversal from the circumstances of their original 2020 departure, an exit that became widely known as “Megxit.” At the time, Harry and Meghan announced in a statement described as “a personal message from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex” that they intended to step back as senior royals and work toward financial independence, while continuing to support Queen Elizabeth II. That original announcement caught even some within the royal household by surprise; a follow-up statement from Buckingham Palace at the time noted that discussions with the couple were “at an early stage,” adding, “We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.” As part of that earlier transition, the couple relinquished their use of HRH titles, agreed to no longer represent the monarch in an official capacity, and pledged to repay the roughly $3.1 million in Sovereign Grant funds spent renovating Frogmore Cottage, their former U.K. residence.

As Harry and Meghan now prepare to reestablish a life in Britain more than six years later, questions remain about how the wider family, particularly William and Catherine, will navigate the couple’s return, and whether the warmth shown during July’s reunion with King Charles will extend more broadly across a family relationship that has remained publicly strained since 2020. Neither Buckingham Palace nor representatives for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have released a detailed public statement addressing how the family’s day-to-day dynamics might evolve once Harry, Meghan and their children are settled back in the U.K. later this month.

Gold prices have been recording sharp gains since Thursday after a surprise liquidity support announcement by the US Treasury pushed yields and the dollar lower.

Gold futures on the MCX with an October expiry crossed Rs 1.6 lakh per 10 grams, while the December and February contracts traded above Rs 1.62 lakh and Rs 1.64 lakh per 10 grams, respectively.

Muthoot Finance, Manappuram Finance and IIFL Finance provide loans with gold as collateral.

Rising gold prices will increase the value of the pledged collateral. Since gold loans are sanctioned based on the per-gram valuation of gold, higher prices will require borrowers to pledge less jewellery to access the same loan amount, which in turn can make such loans more attractive.

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Muthoot Finance shares jumped 3% on Friday to trade at Rs 3,047 apiece, while Manappuram Finance gained over 2%. IIFL Finance shares rallied around 6%. The three stocks have gained 5-7% over the past two sessions.
Also read | Dividend alert! Last day to buy Senco Gold, NALCO and 8 other stocks for dividend rewards

What’s boosting gold prices?

The US Treasury Department earlier this week announced that it would double the size of liquidity support buyback operations for longer-dated notes and bonds. The US dollar, meanwhile, remained muted, making the American greenback-priced metals cheaper for buyers ⁠holding other ‌currencies.

Markets are now pricing in a 64% probability that the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged in September, while the probability of a rate hike stands at 36%, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Gold is traditionally viewed as a hedge against economic turmoil and inflation, but higher interest rates can weigh on demand for the non-yielding asset.

Meanwhile, the geopolitical turmoil continues to boil in the Middle East. US Treasury chief Scott Bessent said the United States will impose “the toughest sanctions in history” on Iran, dding that the move could reduce the need for new major military operations.

This comes after US President Donald Trump has warned of economic consequences against any country that provided “any type of lifeline to Iran”. In a message posted on social media on Wednesday evening, Trump promised “Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,” although details were scant. Iran has faced continuous punitive economic sanctions for nearly 50 years, since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

Also read |Gold steadies, heads for third straight weekly gain

“ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type ⁠of lifeline ‌to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences,” Trump wrote.

(With inputs from agencies)

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

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Deric Ned, founder of Ridgemont Capital, based in Pasadena, California, believes one question separates a real financial plan from a relationship mistaken for one: why do you own what you own? It sounds simple. Many people, when asked directly, find they can’t answer it with much precision.

Why Trust Isn’t Load-Bearing

Most people choose a financial advisor the way they choose a friend: they like the person, they feel comfortable with them, and comfort starts to stand in for understanding. Deric sees that as a risk, not because trust is bad, but because it’s fragile. “Trust is probably one of the most fragile things you can build anything on,” he says. “You could be married to somebody for 40 years and lose all trust in them in a matter of three seconds. It doesn’t take anything to destroy an entire lifetime of trust, and rebuilding that trust is nearly impossible.”

A plan resting on comfort alone tends to wobble the moment comfort runs out, whether that’s a rough quarter in the market or a worrying headline. A plan the client can explain in their own words tends to hold steadier.

What a Documented Answer Looks Like

Deric points to a common pattern in how performance gets discussed industry-wide: strong years get credited to skill, weak years get filed under patience. “If your account goes up, I’ll tell you I’m a genius. If your account goes down, I’m going to tell you, ride it out,” he says, describing the reflex. It’s not dishonest so much as incomplete. Neither response actually explains why a given holding is in the account or what it’s supposed to be doing there.

Answering that question well takes documentation: what’s owned, what it costs, what it’s expected to do, and how it behaves under different conditions. At Ridgemont, that kind of documentation is treated as the starting point of a client relationship rather than something produced only when asked. Diagnosis comes before any recommendation, and recommendations are meant to be reviewable on paper, not just remembered from a conversation.

Why the Question Is Worth Asking Yourself

For a client, the value of this isn’t philosophical. It’s practical. A statement is a list of decisions, and each line should have a reason attached that the client can state without help. A fund holding large U.S. companies is there for broad equity exposure. A bond maturing in a given year is there because it’s earmarked for a specific expense. When a client can produce that kind of answer for most of what they hold, they have a plan. When they can’t yet, that’s simply a good place to start.

This isn’t about finding fault with any advisor. Most people in the industry are doing honest work in a system that rewards steady, ongoing relationships more than it rewards frequent line-by-line reviews. That’s a reasonable trade-off for many clients. It just means the responsibility for asking the question often falls on the client rather than waiting for someone to raise it first.

Deric’s broader point is about confidence, not confrontation. A client who understands what they own and why can sit with a bad headline or a rough quarter without needing anyone to talk them down. That’s the outcome worth aiming for: not a better relationship with an advisor, but a client who feels steady on their own.