Gold declines for third day as dollar stabilizes, hurting demand

[NEW YORK] Gold dropped for a third day as the dollar stabilized after a slump sparked by the Federal Reserve paring its interest-rate outlook for 2016.

Bullion for immediate delivery declined as much as 0.4 per cent to US$1,250.99 an ounce and was at US$1,251.60 at 9.50 am in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal fell a combined 0.6 per cent on Thursday and Friday.

Gold has risen 18 per cent this year, buoyed by speculation that the Fed wouldn't actually boost rates by the four times that policy makers signaled at the end of 2015.

Last week, projections from the central bank implied just two quarter-point increases this year, sparking a sell-off in the US currency. Gold was trading lower on Monday following a recovery in the dollar, according to David Lennox, an analyst at Fat Prophets in Sydney.

BLOOMBERG