US gold reversed much of Monday's declines when the dollar gave up its gains against the euro, traders said, adding that continued crude oil losses kept pressure on the yellow metal. The August contract finished $4.80, or 0.51 percent, lower at $928.80 an ounce, on the COMEX division of New York Mercantile Exchange.
August gold cut most of its earlier losses, which led to a low at $916.30 from a $938.30-a-tonne high, below the 2-1/2-month high on Thursday at $950 an ounce. Gold fell early on Monday along with crude oil and other commodities - from metals to softs to grains - as funds sold when they returned from a long US holiday weekend.
Traders said early dollar gains was the impetus behind gold selling. Later, when the dollar fell, gold pulled up off its steep declines as overseas investors renewed their interest in dollar-denominated assets like gold. Some chartists cite a low hit June 27 near $912 an ounce as next support, adding that gold remains bullish as long as it holds above $903 an ounce on the August contract.
COMEX estimated final gold volume at 123,576 lots, with options turnover at 11,200 lots. Thursday's tally came to 140,740 lots, with open interest up 6,959 at 445,754 lots. Spot gold pulls off low to change hands at $925.15/926.35 by 2:26 pm EDT (1826 GMT), compared with its New York finish of $932.70/934.70 by late Thursday.
SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, closed strong at 658.38, off near-record high at 658.57 tonnes hit last week. September silver followed gold prices lower, ending with a 45-cent loss at $17.92 an ounce, a 2.45 percent decline.
COMEX silver slid to a $17.67-an-ounce-low from a high at $18.36, below the 2-1/2-month high hit Thursday at $18.5850 an ounce. COMEX estimated final silver volume at 29,048 lots, compared with 30,024 lots on Thursday. Spot silver dropped to $17.79/17.84 from $18.21/18.31 late Thursday.
October platinum slips $46.60, or 2.30 percent, to close at $1,983.80 an ounce, driven down along with other precious metals. Spot platinum fell to $1,967.0/1,987.0 an ounce in late trade. September palladium was down $13.40, or 2.89 percent, at $449.55 an ounce by the end. Spot palladium was quoted lower at $443.0/451.0 per ounce in late business.