Investing.com - Gold prices fell on Monday as the dollar climbed after U.S. 10-year treasury yield pulled back to below the 3% level.
Gold futures for June delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange was down $1.20, or 0.1%, to $1,322.4 a troy ounce by 12:30AM ET (04:30 GMT).
The U.S. dollar index that tracks the greenback against a basket of six major currencies last stood at 91.36, up 0.05%, holding below Friday’s high of 91.71, the strongest level since January 11.
The dollar index climbed 1.37% last week, boosted by rising U.S. yields and the prospect of a faster pace of rate hikes by the Federal Reserve this year.
The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes rose above psychologically important 3% level for the first time since 2014 last week, amid rising inflation expectations.
The yield subsequently backed off that level and was last at 2.964%.
Dollar-denominated assets such as gold are sensitive to moves in the dollar – a gain in the dollar makes gold more expensive for holders of foreign currency and thus decreases demand for the precious metal.
Geopolitical developments were also in focus as South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s spokesmen said on Sunday that North Korea would shut down its main nuclear test site in May.
The news came after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un pledged “complete denuclearization” at a meeting with Moon on Friday.
In other precious metal trade, silver futures edged 0.05% higher to $16.415 a troy ounce, and platinum futures slipped 0.64% to $910.9 an ounce.