Investing.com – Gold futures were down for a second day on Thursday, as the safe haven appeal of the precious metal was dented after upbeat manufacturing data from the U.S. and China eased concerns over a slowdown in the world’s two biggest economies.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,821.95 a troy ounce during late Asian trade, shedding 0.4%.
It earlier fell as much as 0.7% to trade at a daily low of USD1,815.15 a troy ounce.
Official data released earlier showed that China's purchasing managers' index rebounded from a 28-month low in August, climbing to 50.9 from 50.7. A reading above 50.0 indicates growing activity.
The report came after U.S. government data on Wednesday showed that orders for manufactured goods increased 2.4% in July, above expectations for a 1.9% gain.
A stronger U.S. dollar also weighed on gold prices. The greenback traded at a two-week high against the euro, while the dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.35% to trade at 74.46.
Gold prices often move inversely to the U.S. dollar, as gold becomes more expensive for buyers using other currencies.
Gold futures were supported after data from the International Monetary Fund showed that Russia’s central bank purchased 4.42 tonnes of gold in July, taking its total holdings of the precious metal to 841.13 tonnes.
Colombia’s central bank raised its official holdings of gold for the first time since 1998 last month, buying 2.3 tonnes of the yellow metal to bring its reserves to 9.14 tonnes.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery slumped 0.45% to trade at USD41.43 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery dropped 1.04% to trade USD4.157 a pound.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,821.95 a troy ounce during late Asian trade, shedding 0.4%.
It earlier fell as much as 0.7% to trade at a daily low of USD1,815.15 a troy ounce.
Official data released earlier showed that China's purchasing managers' index rebounded from a 28-month low in August, climbing to 50.9 from 50.7. A reading above 50.0 indicates growing activity.
The report came after U.S. government data on Wednesday showed that orders for manufactured goods increased 2.4% in July, above expectations for a 1.9% gain.
A stronger U.S. dollar also weighed on gold prices. The greenback traded at a two-week high against the euro, while the dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was up 0.35% to trade at 74.46.
Gold prices often move inversely to the U.S. dollar, as gold becomes more expensive for buyers using other currencies.
Gold futures were supported after data from the International Monetary Fund showed that Russia’s central bank purchased 4.42 tonnes of gold in July, taking its total holdings of the precious metal to 841.13 tonnes.
Colombia’s central bank raised its official holdings of gold for the first time since 1998 last month, buying 2.3 tonnes of the yellow metal to bring its reserves to 9.14 tonnes.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery slumped 0.45% to trade at USD41.43 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery dropped 1.04% to trade USD4.157 a pound.