Gold futures in New York closed slightly higher in a sluggish on Wednesday session as traders stepped out of the market to weigh the longer-term direction of crude oil and the US economy after Hurricane Quatrain.
Final estimated volume was modest 44,000 contracts on a day when volatility in crude oil prices prompted many gold traders to take a breather.
Meanwhile, the dollar pared gains against the euro and Swiss franc in a seesaw session as investors debated the impact of Hurricane Quatrain on the US economy and the outlook for interest rates.
"We can talk about oil being down but it's still very high. We can talk about the US dollar being stronger but it's still very weak take everything with a grain of salt," said Bernard Hunter, director of precious metals marketing, ScotiaMocatta in Toronto.
By the close, December delivery gold on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division edged 40 cents higher to $449.00 an ounce, after trading from $450.20 to $447.30.
Spot gold reached $444.80/445.50 an ounce, above the previous late New York quote of $444.05/444.75. The London afternoon fix was $445.05. US crude oil futures ended sharply lower, falling $1.59 to settle at $64.37.
But the drop occurred a week after hitting a record high in the immediate aftermath from Hurricane Quatrain. The storm could also cost as many as 400,000 US jobs and slash economic growth by up to 1 percentage point, the Congressional Budget Office said on Wednesday. Some investors anticipated that with estimates of federal hurricane aid climbing as high as $200 billion, federal spending on rebuilding and the care of evacuees will more than offset short-term disruptions to economic growth.
The euro had drifted lower in New York and last was at $1.2414. US economic data added to expectations that the US central bank would continue to raise rates.
Business productivity grew at a slower-than-expected pace in the second quarter, a government report showed. But compensation gains caused unit labor costs to rise more quickly than first thought.
In other precious metals trade, Comex December silver gained 2 cents to $7.118 an ounce. Spot silver rose to $7.04/7.07 from a late quote of $7.02/7.05 on Tuesday.
It fixed at $7.02. Nymex October platinum fell $2.50 to $908.90 an ounce. Spot platinum slipped to $903/907 from $907/911 late on Tuesday.
December palladium shed 50 cents to conclude at $184.70.
Spot stuck near $182/186.
Comments
Comments are closed.