Gold News & Info

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold slipped 0.3% to close above $1,221, snapping a four-session winning streak, as plunging equities and oil boosted the dollar, undercutting demand for alternative assets.

The Dow plummeted 550 points, or 2.2%, to erase all gains for the year. Worries about slowing global growth, weaker corporate earnings, and conflicts between the US and many of its trading partners, especially China, drove investors to shed risk.

Oil fell hard, with US crude tumbling 7% to its lowest level a year, as the slowing global economy cut into demand expectations. Prices for West Texas Intermediate crude are down more than 30% since early October, hammered by oversupply and trade worries. Gold often trades in sympathy with oil as a hedge against energy-related inflation.

The dollar bounced 0.7%, with falling oil and equities driving traders out of commodity-currencies, like the Aussie dollar, and toward safety in the dollar and yen. Political turmoil over Brexit and Italy's fiscal problems pressured the pound and euro. A rising dollar weighs on gold and other commodities by making them more expensive in other currencies.

Upbeat US housing data also supported the buck after the Commerce Dept said housing starts rose 1.5% in October, although fewer permits were pulled for future construction.

The other precious metals were also lower, with silver sliding 0.9% while platinum and palladium fell 1.2% and 1.3%, respectively.

At the Comex close: December gold slipped $4.10 to $1,221.20; December silver dropped 13 cents to $14.27; January platinum fell $10.60 to $847; and December palladium shed $15.20 to $1,126.10 an ounce.