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1st LD Writethru: Gold down sharply on record-high equities

Xinhua, April 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Friday as global equities hit all-time highs.

The most active gold contract for June delivery fell 19.3 U.S. dollars, or 1.62 percent, to settle at 1,175.00 dollars per ounce.

The U.S.-based Nasdaq hit record levels on Friday in addition to good news out of European corporations put pressure on the precious metal.

A report released by the U.S. Census Department on Friday showed weakness in durable goods. The report showed durables orders adding 4 percent in March after dropping 1.4 percent in February. This was slightly better than expected, but still weaker than necessary for the U.S. Federal Reserve to consider raising interest rates sooner.

Analysts believe that the market is likely to begin focusing on the timing of an increase of the U.S. interest rate, and that the Fed meeting in the last week of April is likely to yield some additional news.

Gold was put under a slight amount of pressure by weakness in the U.S. Dollar Index, which dropped by 0.3 percent to 97.02 as of 17:19 GMT. The index is a measure of the dollar against a basket of major currencies. Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, which means if the dollar goes up, gold futures will fall as gold, measured by the dollar, becomes more expensive for investors.

Silver for May delivery fell 19.3 cents, or 1.22 percent, to close at 15.636 dollars per ounce. Platinum for July delivery dropped 15.3 dollars, or 1.35 percent, to close at 1,121.40 dollars per ounce. Endite