Investing.com - Gold prices brushed off a sharp uptick in the dollar Friday, but remained on track to end the month roughly unchanged, while copper slumped on U.S.-China trade concerns.
Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose by $0.21, or 0.50%, to $1,207.30 troy ounce.
Gold prices fell to a session low of $1,204.50 before pairing losses following a strong uptick in the dollar as investors looked ahead to another rate hike from the Federal Reserve in a little over three weeks.
The Federal Reserve is poised to raise rates at its meeting in September, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose by 0.240% to 95.02.
Gold is sensitive to moves higher in both bond yields and the U.S. dollar. A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for holders of foreign currency, while a rise in U.S. rates lifts the opportunity cost of holding gold as it pays no interest.
The wider metals traded mostly lower, struggling to hold off a wave of selling pressure as weakness from dollar strength was exacerbated by fears of an escalating U.S.-China trade war amid a report President Donald Trump was looking to move ahead with tariffs on China.
Trump plans to move ahead with tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports as soon as a public-comment period concludes next week, Bloomberg reported, citing six people familiar with the matter.
Investors fear that further friction with the U.S. could throw China's economy into a faster decline, hurting Beijing's demand for commodities. A Chinese state planning official stoked fears of slowdown in China earlier this week, warning there were increasing risks to growth in the second half of the year.
Copper prices fell 1.64% to $2.67 a pound, giving back their gains from a day earlier, while zinc prices rose 0.12% at 2,461.50.
Aluminium prices fell 0.56% to 2,119.75, while nickel futures fell 3.70% to 12,815.50.
Silver futures fell 0.16% to $14.57 a troy ounce, while platinum futures gained 0.38% to $788.80.