Demand for gold lacklustre in major Asian hubs

BENGALURU, Dec 15 (Reuters): Demand for physical gold was lacklustre in major Asian hubs this week as high prices dented bullion's appeal going into the holiday season, with buying interest in second biggest consumer India likely to be subdued for the rest of the year.
Global benchmark spot gold prices scaled a five-month peak at $1,250.55 an ounce at the beginning of the week and looked set to notch up their best quarter in seven.
"It's very quiet ... the gold market is firmer, so people are hesitant to buy," said Peter Fung, head of dealing at Wing Fung Precious Metals in Hong Kong.
Top consumer China saw premiums of $5-$6.50 per ounce being charged over the benchmark, down from last week's $5-$7.4 range.
In Hong Kong, premiums were unchanged at $0.60-$1.50 an ounce.
"Even with the festive season, if the prices are too high, buyers will not budge," a Hong-Kong based dealer said.
Meanwhile, premiums in Singapore were also slightly lower at $0.50-$0.60 compared with $0.60-$0.70 last week.