New Delhi, March 5 -- The Middle East conflict, involving the United States and Israel against Iran, has sparked a severe risk-off mood globally. This initially resulted in the sharp rise in demand for safe-haven assets like gold and silver, but the uptrend has remained.

Gold prices in the domestic spot market have risen by Rs.3400 to Rs.1,62,029 on a month-to-date basis as of close on March 4. However, silver prices have slumped a whopping Rs.7000 to Rs.260,900 since the beginning of the US-Iran war over the weekend, indicating investor preference for gold over silver during times of conflict.

The analysts also prefer gold over silver. Manav Modi, Commodities Analyst, Motilal Oswal Financial Services (MOSL), said precious metals act as...