Investing.com - Gold prices were down on Tuesday in Asia as the imminent signing of the U.S.-China phase one deal sent global equities higher and sapped safe-haven demand.
Gold Futures for February delivery on New York’s COMEX fell 0.7% to $1,539.05 by 12:55 AM ET (04:55 GMT). The yellow metal hit April 2013 highs last week after Iran launched rockets at U.S. airbases in Iraq in response to an airstrike that killed a top Iranian general earlier this month.
Sino-U.S. trade optimism were cited as a headwind for the safe-haven metal today. Global equities traded higher today as China and the U.S. prepared to sign a truce in their 18-month-long tariff dispute.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said that the Chinese translation of the deal was almost completed and would be made public on Wednesday, while
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Fox News on the weekend that Beijing had promised to buy $40 billion to $50 billion worth of U.S. farm products annually and a total of $200 billion of U.S. goods over the next two years.
Meanwhile, just two days before the signing of the deal, the U.S. dropped China's designation as a currency manipulator, further easing the tensions between the two nations.
On the data front, China reported that its exports rose for the first time in five months in December, while imports also surpassed expectations.