Gold edges lower as investors book profits ahead of ECB

Investing.com - Gold edged lower on Thursday, as investors booked profits from a recent rally which took prices to a five-month high ahead of the European Central Bank's highly-anticipated policy meeting later in the day, at which it is expected to unveil a government bond-buying program.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for February delivery dipped $7.60, or 0.59%, to trade at $1,286.10 a troy ounce during European morning hours.

A day earlier, gold hit $1,307.00, the most since August 15, before settling at $1,293.70, down 50 cents, or 0.04%.

Futures were likely to find support at $1,272.10, the low from January 20, and resistance at $1,316.50, the high from August 15.

Also on the Comex, silver futures for March delivery declined 16.5 cents, or 0.91%, to trade at $18.02 a troy ounce.

On Wednesday, silver rallied to $18.50 an ounce, the highest level since September 19, before ending at $18.19, up 23.7 cents, or 1.32%.

The euro remained under pressure amid mounting expectations that the ECB will embark on an outright quantitative easing program at its meeting later Thursday, in a bid to stave off the threat of deflation in the euro area.

Uncertainty over the outcome of Greek elections, due to be held on Sunday, with anti-bailout party Syriza leading in the polls also weighed.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.2% to 93.19.

Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for March delivery slumped 2.7 cents, or 1.03%, to trade at $2.586 a pound, as concerns over the global economic outlook and the impact on future demand prospects dampened the appeal of the commodity.

Later in the day, the U.S. was to release weekly data on initial jobless claims, as investors look for further indications on the strength of the economy.