Gold held around the highs of a narrow range on Wednesday in Europe, assisted by the dollar dipping after US durable goods data, but bearish sentiment prevailed. Traders said that despite its slip this afternoon, as durable goods orders were stronger than expected, any renewed dollar strength is seen pushing prices eventually to this year's lows around $410. Durable goods for April rose 1.9 percent, compared with a revised decline of 1.6 percent in March, the US Commerce Department said. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a median rise in orders of one percent in April. The euro was trading around $1.2603 recently, against about $1.2562 just before the data was released.
Spot gold stood at $418.00/418.70 an ounce by 1434 GMT from $417.40/418.10 quoted late in New York on Tuesday.
"Overall the metal remains in the current narrow band between $416-422 where we look set to sit until the dollar decides on its direction," analyst James Moore of TheBullionDesk.com said in a daily report.
The dollar has gained around seven percent this year against the euro, while gold has fallen some six percent since hitting its 2005 high of $446.70 in March.
HSBC metals analyst Alan Williamson said in a daily report that another move higher in the dollar could not be ruled out, particularly with the French and Dutch referendums next week on the European constitution.
"Given recent opinion polls, however, it will be interesting to see how much of a `non' vote has already been largely priced into the market," he added.
Silver was inching higher, after clearing $7.00 resistance, but moves were modest and the market paid little heed to an influential industry report.
Research firm GFMS Ltd said overall mine output rose in 2004, but government sales and scrap recovery declined, while fabrication demand held mainly steady despite the high price.
"GFMS's view is that changes in silver's supply/demand balance have provided a foundation for higher prices, although the absolute levels reached over the last 18 months or so owe more to temporary factors and therefore may not be sustainable in the long run," it said.
Spot silver was last at $7.03/7.06 from $6.96/6.99 on Tuesday in New York.
Platinum was at $864.00/867.00 against $865.00/869.00, while palladium stood at $185.50/188.50 from $185.00/188.00.