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Gold down on stronger U.S. data, equities

Xinhua, July 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell on Thursday, as strength in U.S. equities and U.S. data put pressure on gold.

The most active gold contract for August delivery fell 11.40 U.S. dollars, or 0.85 percent, to settle at 1,332.20 dollars per ounce.

Gold was put under pressure as a report released by the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday showed jobless claims for the week of July 9 holding steady at 254,000, which analysts noted, is better than expected because traders were expecting an increase due to auto sector layoffs.

In a separate report released by the U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday, the department said that the Producer Price Index (PPI) for final demand increased 0.5 percent in June, seasonally adjusted, beating market estimates. Analysts noted that this is also a positive sign for the U.S. economy.

Gold was put under further pressure as the U.S. Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 112 points, or 0.61 percent as of 17:30 GMT. Analysts noted that when equities post losses, the precious metal usually goes up, as investors are looking for a safe haven, while the opposite is true when U.S. equities post gains.

The Bank of England (BoE) Thursday decided to keep its main interest rate, or Bank Rate, unchanged at 0.5 percent, despite speculation it would cut rates. The central bank also kept the quantitative easing (QE) policy at 375 billion pounds (or 500 billion U.S. dollars).

Silver for September delivery was lower of 9.10 cents, or 0.45 percent, to close at 20.322 dollars per ounce. Platinum for October delivery gained 4.40 dollars, or 0.40 percent, to close at 1,104.60 dollars per ounce. Endit