Gold News & Info

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— Gold slipped 0.3% but held above $1,290 as North Korea fears receded and traders took profits from last week's 2.3% rise.

Dialing back the warlike rhetoric, the Trump administration said over the weekend that it is seeking a diplomatic solution to the threat of nuclear weapons in North Korean.

The shift in tone relieved global tensions and revived risk appetite among investors who had fled to safe havens last week. The Dow and S&P 500 rallied around 0.7% and 1%, respectively, while the Global Dow added 07%.

The dollar also bounced higher, picking up 0.3% against major rivals, as traders shifted out of safe-haven currencies like the yen and Swiss franc. A stronger dollar pressures gold and other commodities priced in it for international trade by making them more expensive overseas.

Gold was also pressured by a 2% plunge in oil prices after data showed increased production from OPEC members and US shale-oil producers. Gold often trades in sympathy with oil as a hedge against energy-related inflation.

In a bullish signal, hedge funds and money managers raised their long positions on Comex to nearly a two-month high last week, marking four straight weeks of net increases.

The other precious metals were mixed, with silver and palladium adding 0.3% and 0.5$, respectively, while platinum lost 1.5%.

At the Comex close: December gold slipped $3.60 to $1,290.40; September silver added 5 cents, to $17.12; October platinum lost $14.80 to $974; and September palladium gains $3.45 to $898.15 an ounce.