Gold News & Info

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinNew York spot gold slid 1% to close under $3,397 despite a weaker dollar as traders took profits from Friday's surge to an eight-week high. Silver picked up 0.3% to finish at $36.38 an ounce.

Israel's bombardment of Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities late last week provoked retaliatory additional missile strikes by Iran over the weekend, igniting fears of a broader regional war. Gold jumped 3.3% over two sessions to more than $3,430 an ounce on Friday, its highest close in two months.

While neither side is showing signs of backing down, the conflict appears not to be spinning out of control, as many had feared. Risk appetite returned to Wall Street, with the Dow and S&P 500 rising 0.6% and 0.8%, respectively, while the Nasdaq added 1.4%.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields crept back near 4.5% on the shift toward risk, pressuring gold by increasing the opportunity cost for holding it instead of bonds for safety.

But the dollar ticked 0.2% lower against major rivals as currency traders, still hedging against Middel East turmoil and US trade uncertainty, preferred the Swiss franc and Japanese yen for safety. The buck has lost 9% this year.

Platinum picked up 3.2% while palladium slid 0.4%.

At the New York spot close: gold fell $34.80 to $3,396.40; silver added a dime, to $36.38; platinum rose $39.20 to $1,250; and palladium retreated by $4.55 to $1,036.70 an ounce.