Investing.com - Gold prices turned higher on Wednesday, after hitting a four-month low earlier in the day, as investors turned their attention to the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting later in the session.
Investors also continued to monitor developments surrounding Greece's debt crisis and mounting losses on Chinese stock markets.
Gold futures for August delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange hit an intraday low of $1,146.20 a troy ounce, a level not seen since March 18, before recovering to trade at $1,154.20 during U.S. morning hours, up $1.60, or 0.16%.
A day earlier, gold tumbled $20.60, or 1.76%, to close at $1,152.60. Futures were likely to find support at $1,142.40, the low from March 17, and resistance at $1,168.50, the high from July 7.
Also on the Comex, silver futures for September delivery declined 6.2 cents, or 0.41%, to trade at $14.90 a troy ounce. On Tuesday, silver fell to $14.62, the weakest level since December 1.
Investors will be focusing on Wednesday’s minutes of the June Fed meeting for further clues on the timing of a U.S. rate hike.
Gold prices have weakened in recent weeks amid indications that the U.S. economy is regaining strength after a recent bout of weakness, supporting the case for higher interest rates later this year.
Meanwhile, Greece formally requested a three-year bailout from the European Stability Mechanism, the euro zone’s permanent bailout fund, on Wednesday.
At an emergency euro zone summit in Brussels on Tuesday evening, European leaders handed Athens a five-day deadline to submit a detailed package of reforms to international creditors in return for a bailout.
Failure to reach an agreement would increase the likelihood of Greece leaving the single currency union.
Uncertainty over Greece has so far failed to spur increased investor demand for gold, often perceived as a safe-haven asset.
Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for September delivery hit an intraday low of $2.384 a pound, a level not seen since July 2009, before trading at $2.437 during morning hours in New York, down 1.0 cent, or 0.4%.
A day earlier, copper tumbled 9.1 cents, or 3.61%, to close at $2.446 as concerns over Greece's debt crisis and mounting losses on Chinese stock markets weighed.
Shares in China plunged further on Wednesday despite fresh efforts by the government to calm the market.
The Shanghai Composite tumbled nearly 6% in volatile trade on Wednesday after having fallen as much as 8% shortly after the open with trading in more than 500 companies listed in Shenzhen and Shanghai suspended. The index is down almost 37% over the past four weeks.
Market players are concerned that the plunge in the stock market could spread to other parts of the Chinese economy, triggering fears that the Asian nation's demand for the industrial metal will decline.
China is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.