Gold dips on higher yields, faces third straight weekly fall
GOLD prices edged lower on Friday (Jul 1), and were on track for a third straight weekly decline, as rising US Treasury yields weighed on demand for zero-yield bullion.
Spot gold was down 0.1 per cent at US$1,805.39 per ounce, as of 1.03 am GMT, after hitting a more than 6-week low of US$1,801.50 in the previous session. US gold futures were flat at US$1,806.40.
Gold prices, coming off their worst quarter since early 2021 due to hawkish central banks and a soaring US dollar, have lost about 1.2 per cent this week.
A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for buyers holding other currencies.
Benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields rose after falling to their lowest since Jun 7 on Thursday.
New US data for May showed little immediate relief from the record pace of inflation pushing the Federal Reserve toward another oversized interest rate increase next month, but it did add to a developing sense that the worst may be over.
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Higher interest rates raise the opportunity cost of holding bullion, which yields no interest.
SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.22 per cent to 1,050.31 tonnes on Thursday from 1,052.63 tonnes on Wednesday.
Spot silver eased 0.1 per cent to US$20.23 per ounce and has dropped about 4.1 per cent this week, its most since mid-May.
Platinum rose 0.2 per cent to US$895.50, but faces a fourth consecutive weekly fall of about 1.4 per cent.
Palladium dropped 0.3 per cent to US$1,920.53, but has gained about 2.8 per cent this week. REUTERS
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