Gold recovers on equities

Gold futures on the COMEX Division of the New York Mercantile Exchange regained some ground on Thursday from the 4.3 percent loss in the previous session, as bargain hunters took the break as a chance to re-enter the gold market. Strong rally in equity market also helped lift the precious metal. The most active gold contract for April delivery rose 10.9 dollars, or 0.6 percent, to 1,722.2 dollars per ounce. Gold rebounded on Thursday, after witnessing the biggest sell- off of the year, as bargain hunters stepped in to \"buy the dip\" in prices. \"Markets need to refresh in order to keep them healthy and two sided, this huge price dip may be seen as a \'bargain buying\" opportunity in the Asian sector tonight,\" said Mike Daly, a gold specialist with PFGbest here in Chicago. Gold price avalanched on Wednesday, after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke hinted that there was not a present need for more monetary easing plan at this point, sending Gold bugs into a selling frenzy as most traders and investors were all but certain that Quantitative Easing 3 was a foregone conclusion, Daly said. Gold also gained some strength as U.S. stocks rebounded from the biggest decline in two weeks, climbing following a strong reading on the U.S. weekly jobless claims. Silver for May delivery rallied 1.019 dollars, or 2.9 percent, to 35.661 dollars per ounce.