Investing.com – Gold prices traded below breakeven, as investor demand for the yellow metal eased on the back of a trio of mostly upbeat economic reports suggesting that the U.S. economy remained robust.
Gold futures for August delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell by $3.07, or 0.25%, to $1,242.53 a troy ounce.
Gold is on course to post its first monthly loss this year, as better than expected manufacturing and consumer sentiment data underpinned a move higher in the greenback, lessening demand for dollar-dominated gold.
Manufacturing activity showed no signs of a slowdown, after The Chicago Purchasing Management Index, climbed to 65.7, its highest since May 2014, from 59.4 in May.
Analysts had forecast a figure of 58.0 for June.
The upbeat manufacturing report came ahead of a report showing U.S. consumer sentiment fell less than expected to 95.1 in June, from 97.1 in May.
Meanwhile, Core PCE, a key measure of inflation the Federal Reserve considers in its interest rate decisions, dipped to 1.4% year-over-year in May, from 1.5% in the previous month.
Gold has struggled to pare losses amid a flurry of comments from central banks signalling that ultra-low accommodative monetary policy measures may be nearing the end, resulting in an uptick in global bond yields, decreasing demand for non-interest bearing gold.
Gold is sensitive to moves higher in both bond yields and the U.S. dollar – A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for holders of foreign currency while a rise in U.S. rates, lift the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as bullion.
In other precious metals trade, silver futures rose 0.13% to $16.607, a troy ounce while platinum futures gained 0.23% to $925.20.
Copper traded at $2.713, up 0.65%, while natural gas, dipped by 1.35% to $2.998.