Tokyo gold futures tumbled on Friday, with most contracts dipping by their daily limit on a decline in Comex gold, which fell to a one-month low, and weaker bullion prices in Asia.
The benchmark December 2004 gold contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange (TOCOM) settled down 40 yen per gram, the daily limit, at 1,390 yen.
The day's high was 1,397 yen. All other months, with the exception of the April contract, fell by 40 yen. The April contract dipped by 38 yen.
"Prices fell by more than $10 (per ounce) in New York yesterday, and this weighed on (TOCOM) today," a broker said.
On TOCOM, silver, platinum and palladium were also pulled lower across the board.
Comex gold fell to a one-month low on Thursday, with silver falling in tandem, as a firming dollar spooked speculators out of the long positions booked in gold's rise to 15-year highs last week.
The profit taking came a day before Comex closes on Friday for a three-day weekend.
US financial markets will be closed on Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Jr's birthday.
Total gold turnover on TOCOM was estimated at brisk 186,749 lots, or about 186.7 tonnes, up from Thursday's 121,478 lots.
In the spot market, bullion was fetching $407.50/8.25 an ounce at TOCOM's closing bell, compared with $408.75//9.00 last quoted in New York.
Spot gold slipped in Asia on lack of interest from key buyers, with a sharp drop in Comex prices sending a signal that investors might be restoring their faith in the US dollar.
The dollar was fetching 106.09/12, against 106.22/27 yen at about the same time on Thursday.
Below are closing prices for TOCOM's most active precious metals contracts, with the day's turnover for each metal.