Gold prices retreat to nearly 4-month low as dollar perks up

Gold prices on Tuesday headed lower as one popular measure of the U.S. dollar teetered near a two-year high, producing some headwinds for bullion.

Gold for June delivery GCM9, -0.49% declined $3.80, or 0.3%, to trade at $1,273.80 an ounce, pushing the commodity back to its lowest level for a most-active contract since Dec. 26, according to FactSet data.

The moves comes as the ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +0.38% a key gauge of greenback against six major rivals, was up 0.1% at 97.345. A climb to 97.71, would mark the highest level for the dollar index since June of 2017, according to FactSet data. A stronger U.S. unit can make buying the buck-pegged commodity comparatively more expensive for investors using other currencies.

Gold lost 1.5% for the holiday-shortened week, with financial markets closed for Good Friday and many markets in Europe closed for Easter Monday. Last week, gold market its fourth weekly loss in a row, with a jump in U.S. retail figures providing support for the dollar and dulling the appeal of the precious metal. A climb near records for the S&P 500 index SPX, +0.32% the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +0.21% and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.55% also has highlighted growing appetite for assets perceived as risky and away from safe investments.

Meanwhile, the SPDR Gold Shares ETF GLD, -0.46% edged down 0.2% in premarket trade, while the miner-focused Vectors Gold Miners ETF GDX, -0.76% wasn’t actively trade before the bell.

“The precious metal remains near the lows of the year and will likely take a queue from this week’s big earnings results. The yellow metals gains are likely to be hampered by trade deal optimism between China and the US,” wrote Edward Moya, market analyst at Oanda, in a late-Monday report.

MarketWatch

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