LONDON: Gold eased in Europe on Tuesday, reversing earlier gains, as the dollar swung towards a session high versus the euro amid caution ahead of a two-day Federal Reserve meeting on monetary policy.
Spot gold was bid at $942.45 an ounce at 1406 GMT, against $944.65 an ounce late in New York on Monday. US gold futures for December delivery on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $2.30 to $944.60 an ounce.
Gold is mainly being driven by the currency markets at present, analysts said, as a stronger dollar makes commodities priced in the currency more expensive for non-US investors.
The world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, New York’s SPDR Gold Trust, said its holdings declined by another 11,329 ounces on Monday, and have fallen more than 65 tonnes from record levels since June 1.
Among other precious metals, silver prices eased along with gold. Silver was at $14.25 an ounce against $14.30, while platinum was at $1,236.50 an ounce against $1,243.50 and palladium was at $270, down from $272.
Copper retreats: Copper slipped on Tuesday as the market paused to assess data from top consumer China on economic growth and metals demand, showing an end to record inflows of the metal used in power and construction.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was trading at $6,044 a tonne at 1421 GMT from $6,135 at the close on Monday, when it touched a 10-month high of $6,258 a tonne.
The metal is up about 50% since April, when markets started to think the worst of the recession could be over. China’s copper imports fell nearly 15% to 406,612 tonnes in July from June.
Aluminium traded down at $1,947 a tonne from $1,972 on Monday. The metal used in transport and packaging is also up about 50% since April, partly because of reviving activity in the auto sector.
Also behind the rise is the amount of aluminium — about 70% of the record 4.56 million tonnes held in LME warehouses — tied up in financing deals to release cash for producers.
Nickel was at $19,790 a tonne from $20,200 on Monday when it hit an 11-month high of $20,475. It has been boosted by signs of restocking by stainless steel mills, which account for about two-thirds of global nickel demand. Lead was at $1,816 a tonne from $1,874 on Monday, zinc at $1,835 a tonne from $1,850 and tin at $14,600 from $14,750. reuters
