Gold prices post biggest one-day drop in four decades

New York: Gold prices plunged on Friday, heading for their largest one-day decline since 1983, while silver fell nearly 30 percent and was on track for its worst day ever.

In spot trading, gold dropped 9.5 percent to $4,883.62 an ounce after hitting a record high of $5,594.82 on Thursday. gold for February delivery fell 11.4 percent to settle at $4,745.10 an ounce.

Among other precious metals, silver in spot trading tumbled 27.7 percent to $83.99 an ounce, after dipping as low as $77.72 earlier. Silver was headed for its largest single-day drop ever, while platinum lost 19.18 percent to $2,125 an ounce and palladium fell 15.7 percent to $1,682.