Investing.com - Gold prices swung between small gains and losses on Tuesday, as investors turned their attention to a key meeting between euro zone finance ministers later in the day to discuss their next move on Greece.
The meeting comes ahead of a summit of European leaders, in what could be Greece's final opportunity to strike a deal with its international lenders.
Gold futures for August delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange shed 30 cents, or 0.03%, to trade at $1,166.30 a troy ounce during European morning hours.
Futures were likely to find support at $1,155.80, the low from July 2, and resistance at $1,180.00, the high from June 30. Also on the Comex, silver futures for September delivery declined 4.8 cents, or 0.31%, to trade at $15.58 a troy ounce.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was to present new proposals to euro zone finance ministers later in the day, ahead of a meeting of European leaders to discuss the aftermath of Sunday’s referendum in Greece.
Greek banks were set to remain closed on Tuesday after capital controls were extended until Wednesday, amid concerns that lenders are close to running out of cash.
The European Central Bank announced Monday that it would keep its emergency liquidity assistance to Greece unchanged at levels announced last Monday. The ECB also said it will adjust the haircuts on collateral accepted by the Bank of Greece as part of the ELA, adding to pressure on Athens.
On Monday, gold jumped $9.70, or 0.83%, to close at $1,173.20 after Greek voters overwhelmingly rejected conditions of a rescue package from creditors in a weekend referendum, adding to doubts over the country's future in the euro zone and deepened a standoff with its lenders.
Gold's gains were capped by a stronger U.S. dollar. The dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.45% to 96.87 early Tuesday, boosted by weakness in the euro.
Investors were looking ahead to U.S. trade data later in the day amid concerns that the stronger dollar is acting as a drag on exports.
Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for September delivery tumbled 4.1 cents, or 1.63%, to trade at a five-month low of $2.485 a pound, as mounting losses on Chinese stock markets dampened appetite for the red metal.
Shares in China resumed their decline despite efforts by the government to calm the market. The Shanghai Composite tumbled nearly 3% in volatile trade on Tuesday. The index is down almost 32% over the past three weeks.
Policymakers in Beijing announced the suspension of initial public offerings over the weekend and corralled its leading brokerages to establish a RMB120 billion fund to support the country's battered stock market.
Market players are concerned that the recent plunge in the stock market could spread to other parts of the economy, triggering fears that China’s demand for the industrial metal will decline.
The Asian nation is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.