Gold regained strength on Thursday after an earlier drop to a two-week low attracted buying from jewellers, the electronics sector and bargain hunters, but losses in oil may limit gains. Platinum also bounced after hitting a six-month low.
But sentiment was bearish on fears of falling demand from car makers, such as General Motors and Toyota Motor Corp, given a slowing US economy. Gold fell as low as $916.40 an ounce, its lowest since July 9, before rebounding to $922.60/923.60 an ounce, up from $921.35/922.95 late in New York on Wednesday but still well below a record high of $1,030.80 hit in March.
Spot palladium fell to $382.00/390.00 an ounce from $383.00/391.00 late in New York. It hit an intraday low of $371.50 an ounce, its lowest level since January 25. Silver edged up to $17.39/17.45 an ounce from $17.33/17.38 late in New York, off a three-week low of $17.26.
Gold futures for August delivery on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange added $0.3 to $923.10 an ounce. The most active Tokyo gold contract for June 2009 delivery on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange fell 46 yen per gram to 3,229 yen.