Investing.com - Gold fell on Tuesday as the dollar was bolstered by news that China and the U.S. were negotiating a trade deal.
Comex gold futures for April delivery slumped 1.02% to a five-week high of $1,341.20 a troy ounce as of 10:28 AM ET (14:28 GMT).
The U.S and China are negotiating trade agreements to give the U.S. access to Chinese markets, according to various media reports.
China has offered to buy more semiconductors from the U.S., as well as opening up the financial services sector to foreign investment, the Financial Times reported. Last week U.S. President Donald Trump announced tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese imports, prompting concerns over a global trade war.
The reports eased investor appetite for risk, as a trade war between the two biggest economies in the world seems less likely.
Gold was also held down by a rise in the American dollar.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.45% to 89.04.
Investors seek out gold as a store of value during times of geopolitical uncertainty or market turmoil, while a weaker dollar makes the dollar-denominated metal cheaper for holders of other currencies.
Prices of gold rose to a five-week high of $1,356.70 overnight as tensions between Russia and the West rose. The U.S. and European Union countries expelled over 100 Russian diplomats on Monday in response to the poisoning of a former British-Russian spy earlier in March. Moscow has denied any wrongdoing and has said it will retaliate.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver futures were down 0.92% to $16.530 a troy ounce. Among other precious metals, Platinum Futures decreased 0.88% to $948.00, while Palladium Futures inched up 0.17% to $968.50 an ounce.
Meanwhile, copper futures rose 0.54% to $2.986 a pound.