Investing.com - Gold broke below its long-held perch of $1,200 an ounce on Tuesday before settling above that key psychological level, keeping alive bullion fans' hopes of a recovery as equity markets struggled again.
Futures for December delivery fell to a November low of $1,196.70 per troy ounce before settling at $1,201.40, down $2.10, or 0.2% on the day. It was the fourth-straight day of losses for the yellow metal, which has lost more than $20 since its last positive settlement on Nov. 7.
On Wall Street, the Dow fell 0.3% by 3:47 PM ET (20:47 GMT), giving back early gains that signaled the market wasn't on firm footing yet after October's rout.
"The skittish trading in stocks is actually giving gold bulls hope that the market can hold at above the $1,200 and possibly take on the $1,250 resistance in the near term despite the threat of oncoming rate hikes and what that could do to the dollar," said Tom Beller, market strategist at RJO Futures in Chicago.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six currencies, was down 0.4% to 97.02.
The dollar rallied last week after strong U.S. producer price index data on Friday underlined the case for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates again in December.
The Fed has already hiked rates three times this year and is determined to stay ahead of the inflationary curve with more increases in 2019 after the robust growth seen lately in the economy.
Dealers are looking out for this week's consumer price index and retail sales data to see if they beat expectations and further inflate the dollar.