NEW YORK—Gold futures rose Monday as some participants decided that last week's sharp selloff created buying opportunities.
In recent trading, benchmark April gold was up $14.10, or 1.3%, at $1,066.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract lost more than $65 over the previous three sessions.
But gold's price is still historically high; the metal hasn't been below $1,000 an ounce since October.
"The market's entitled to these breaks," said Stephen Platt, analyst with Archer Financial Services.
Further support is coming from weakness in the U.S. dollar, which has made dollar-denominated gold cheaper for purchasers using other currencies, as well as some possible physical buying ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations, which begin at the end of the week.
"The markets are a lot more stable" than last week, Mr. Platt said.
Although euro zone debt concerns continue to fester, a potentially bearish factor for gold since the metal has been trading as a risk play with other assets classes in recent months, there are perceptions in the market that gold's "technical picture is as oversold as it has been in a couple of years," said Kitco Metals analyst Jon Nadler.
"Thus, the tug of war in which gold is currently caught is keeping the action tense and indecisive," he said.
