Investing.com - Gold futures came under heavy selling pressure on Tuesday, tumbling to a three-week low amid ongoing concerns over how long the Federal Reserve will maintain the pace of its asset purchases.
Moves in the gold price this year have largely tracked shifting expectations as to whether the U.S. central bank would end its bond-buying program sooner-than-expected.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for August delivery traded at USD1,370.15 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours, down 1.15% on the day.
Comex gold prices fell by as much as 1.4% earlier in the session to hit a daily low of USD1,366.35 a troy ounce, the weakest level since May 23.
Gold futures were likely to find near-term support at USD1,355.55 a troy ounce, the low from May 23 and resistance at USD1,401.05, the high from May 28.
Speculation that the Fed will begin to taper its asset purchase program continued following last week’s upbeat U.S. jobs data and after ratings agency Standard & Poor’s revised its long-term outlook on the U.S. credit rating to stable from negative on Monday, citing an improving economic outlook.
Meanwhile, markets players were disappointed after the Bank of Japan refrained from implementing measures to ease volatility in the government bond market following its latest policy setting meeting.
The BoJ left monetary policy unchanged and said the economy was picking up, one day after official data showed that Japan’s economy expanded by an annualized 4.1% in the first quarter, up from a preliminary reading of 3.5%.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for July delivery dropped 1.5% to trade at USD21.59 a troy ounce, while copper for July delivery fell 1.4% to trade at USD3.196 a pound.
Copper futures fell sharply to hit a five-week low as uncertainty over the direction of U.S. monetary policy and lingering concerns over China’s economic outlook weighed on demand for the industrial metal.
Moves in the gold price this year have largely tracked shifting expectations as to whether the U.S. central bank would end its bond-buying program sooner-than-expected.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for August delivery traded at USD1,370.15 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours, down 1.15% on the day.
Comex gold prices fell by as much as 1.4% earlier in the session to hit a daily low of USD1,366.35 a troy ounce, the weakest level since May 23.
Gold futures were likely to find near-term support at USD1,355.55 a troy ounce, the low from May 23 and resistance at USD1,401.05, the high from May 28.
Speculation that the Fed will begin to taper its asset purchase program continued following last week’s upbeat U.S. jobs data and after ratings agency Standard & Poor’s revised its long-term outlook on the U.S. credit rating to stable from negative on Monday, citing an improving economic outlook.
Meanwhile, markets players were disappointed after the Bank of Japan refrained from implementing measures to ease volatility in the government bond market following its latest policy setting meeting.
The BoJ left monetary policy unchanged and said the economy was picking up, one day after official data showed that Japan’s economy expanded by an annualized 4.1% in the first quarter, up from a preliminary reading of 3.5%.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for July delivery dropped 1.5% to trade at USD21.59 a troy ounce, while copper for July delivery fell 1.4% to trade at USD3.196 a pound.
Copper futures fell sharply to hit a five-week low as uncertainty over the direction of U.S. monetary policy and lingering concerns over China’s economic outlook weighed on demand for the industrial metal.