Gold Futures Settle Lower For 4th Straight Day As Dollar, Treasury Yields Rise

Gold futures settled lower on Wednesday, extending losses to a fourth straight session, as the dollar’s surge against its peers and rising global bond yields reduced the commodity’s safe-haven appeal.

The dollar index rose to 91.06 by mid-morning and was holding firm at 90.95 a little while ago, gaining about 0.5% from the previous close.

Early in the day, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield rose to more than 1.3%, hitting their highest level in about a year, driven by increasing inflationary concerns in the wake of vaccine rollouts and prospects of more stimulus.

Gold futures for April ended down $26.20 points or 1.5% at $1,772.80 an ounce.

Silver futures for March closed lower by $0.010 at $27.315 an ounce, while Copper futures for March settled at $3.8205 per pound, down $0.0135 from the previous close.

Data released by the Commerce Department showed retail sales in the U.S. rebounded by much more than anticipated in the month of January, spiking by 5.3%, after sliding by a revised 1% in December.

Economists had expected retail sales to jump by 1.1% compared to the 0.7% decrease originally reported for the previous month.

A separate report from the Labor Department showed U.S. producer prices jumped by 1.3% in January after rising by 0.3% in December. Economists had expected producer prices to increase by 0.4%.

According to a report released by the Federal Reserve, industrial production in the U.S. climbed by 0.9% in January after jumping by a downwardly revised 0.9% a month earlier. Economists had expected industrial production to rise by 0.5% in January.

Source: Read Full Article