Investing.com - Gold prices held near a four-month low on Thursday, following the release of U.S. data on first quarter growth and jobless claims.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for August delivery fell to a session low of $1,251.60 a troy ounce, the weakest level since February 4, before trimming losses to last trade at $1,254.60 during U.S. morning hours, down 0.4%, or $5.10.
Gold prices were likely to find support at $1,247.80 an ounce, the low from February 4 and resistance at $1,294.70, the high from May 27.
Data released earlier showed that the U.S. economy contracted for the first time since 2011 in the first three months of the year, as an unusually harsh winter weighed on the economy.
The Commerce Department said gross domestic product contracted at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1% in the first quarter, worse than expectations for a decline of 0.5%.
Preliminary data initially pegged U.S. growth at 0.1% in the first quarter. The U.S. economy expanded by 2.6% in the preceding quarter.
At the same time, the U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending May 24 decreased by 27,000 to a seasonally adjusted 300,000 from the previous week’s revised total of 327,000.
Analysts had expected jobless claims to fall by 9,000 to 318,000 last week.
Comex gold prices have been under heavy selling pressure in recent weeks as upbeat U.S. economic data underlined the view that the U.S. economy is shaking off the effects of a weather-related slowdown over the winter, bolstering the outlook for the broader economic recovery.
Wall Street expects second quarter growth to snap back with a 3.8% gain.
Gold remained on the back foot as investors remained hesitant to buy into the market amid a weak technical outlook. Chart signals turned bearish after prices broke below a key support level close to the $1,277-level earlier in the week.
Also on the Comex, silver for July delivery declined 0.95%, or 18.2 cents, to trade at $18.87 a troy ounce, the lowest since May 1. Prices eased down 0.04%, or 0.8 cents, on Wednesday to end at $19.05.
Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for July delivery dropped 0.94%, or 3.0 cents, to trade at $3.144 a pound as investors booked profits on a recent rally which took prices to a 12-week high earlier in the week.
Copper prices have been well-supported in recent sessions amid growing optimism over the health of the U.S. economy and speculation demand from top consumer China will increase in the near-term.