US gold futures ended lower on Friday, retreating from a one-week high set in the previous session as a strong dollar and falling oil prices prompted investors to sell commodities across the board.
GOLD: December settled down $5.50 at $833.50 an ounce on COMEX. Range traded was $826.10 to $843.60, near a one-week high. Bullion weakened as the dollar rebounded sharply from the previous session's heavy losses. Gold's movement still largely tracking the strength of the euro against the dollar - Adam Sarhan, founder of TheSarhanAnalysis.com.
Gold must rise above its long-term moving average to buck the bearish trend - Sarhan. Bullion held on in spite of tumbling crude oil prices. US crude futures ended down $6.59 at $114.59 a barrel. Markets see strong physical demand as investors' load up precious metals after their recent sharp price decline.
Gold Fields, the world's No 4 gold producer, said it would fight fraud claims against a unit of the group totaling 11 billion rand. ($1.44 billion). Germany's Bundesbank rejected calls that it should sell some of its gold reserves, saying financial and political uncertainty make the reserves even more important than before.
COMEX estimated 1 pm volume at a quiet 94,124 lots, while options turnover at 7,239 lots. Open interest of gold futures climbed 2,414 lots to 377,382 contracts as of August 21. Spot gold at $827.00/828.60 at 2:15 pm EDT (1815 GMT), versus Thursday's US close at $832.40/833.40. London's afternoon gold fix at $824 an ounce.
SILVER: September ended down 25.0 cents, 1.8 percent, at $13.477 an ounce, in a $13.295 to $13.935 range. Less liquid silver falls more than gold on crude oil losses and stronger dollar. Estimated 1:00 pm volume at 22,637 lots. Spot silver at $13.33/13.41 compared with $13.80/13.87 Thursday close. London's silver fix at $13.62 an ounce.
PLATINUM: October finished down $17.60, or 1.2 percent, at $1,441.20 an ounce. Profit taking seen after Thursday's solid gains. Spot platinum at $1,425.50/1,445.50. Silver gold fix in London at $13.62 an ounce.
PALLADIUM: September ended down 15 cents at $289.00 an ounce. Spot palladium at $285.00/293.00.
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