Gold News & Info

Source: Marketwatch

San Francisco— Gold futures extended their losing streak to a third session Tuesday as further strength in the dollar helped dull demand, although weaker-than-expected U.S. manufacturing data and fresh concerns over a Greek default provided some support. Gold for December delivery shed $13.40, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,711.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract has tallied a three-session loss of 2.1%, or nearly $36. �Gold is behaving erratically [Tuesday] with some strong currents pushing it in two directions at once,� said Ross Norman, chief executive at London-based bullion broker Sharps Pixley, in emailed comments. He added that support is seen at the $1,680 level.

�Primarily, it is selling on the strong dollar pushing gold lower, and strong physical and [exchange-traded fund] buying from some investors on the other side pushing gold higher,� he said. On Tuesday, the dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback against a basket of major currencies, rallied to 77.160, up from 76.243 late Monday. But gold prices pared losses a bit after news that the Institute for Supply Management manufacturing gauge fell to 50.8% in October. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected the ISM to report that its manufacturing-activity index edged up to 52.1% in October, from 51.6% in September. See full story.