Investing.com – Gold prices fell to three-week lows as the dollar moved off lows shrugging off weaker economic data.
Gold futures for February delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell by $7.30, or 0.53%, to $1,389.60a troy ounce.
The dollar moved off session lows, pressuring gold prices despite a pair of bearish reports pointing to weakness in the economy.
The U.S. Labor Department's latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTs) report, a measure of labor demand, showed job openings in December fell to about 5.81m, short of expectations for 5.96m.
The trade deficit — which measures the gap between what the United States imports and what it exports — widened to $53.1 billion in December, up $2.7 billion from November.
Dovish commentary from St. Louis Federal Reserve president James Bullard, meanwhile, did little to stem losses in the yellow metal. Bullard said that he favours low rates for an extended period, and warned that nominal wages were not a good predictor of inflation.
Dollar-denominated assets such as gold are sensitive to moves in the dollar – A fall in the dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of foreign currency and thus, increases demand.
The fall in gold prices comes as data showed traders appear wary of increasing their bullish bets on gold.
Speculative net long position in gold fell by about 7,000 contracts to a net long 207,300 contracts, according to the most recent Commitment of Traders (COT) report. It was the first decline in net long positions in four weeks.
In other precious metal trade, silver futures fell 0.52% to $16.59 a troy ounce, while platinum futures fell 0.10% to $994.50.
Copper fell 0.78% to $3.2, while natural gas fell 0.04% to $2.75.