Gold prices slipped on Monday, weighed down by modest risk aversion across financial markets as concerns about the eurozone persisted, although high oil prices cushioned the slide. Bullion prices rallied more than 3 percent last week, as investors got some relief after Greece secured a bailout and expectations of further monetary easing boosted gold's appeal as an inflation hedge.
During a weekend meeting of Group of 20 finance ministers and central bankers, euro zone nations were told to put up more money to fight their debt crisis if they wanted more help from the rest of the world. "There is a softer turn across commodities after the G20 added to the risk anxiety," said Nick Trevethan, senior commodity strategist at ANZ in Singapore.
Spot gold lost 0.4 percent to $1,773.04 an ounce by 0633 GMT, after posting a gain of 3.3 percent last week. It hit a five-month high of $1,787.11 last Thursday. US gold was little changed at $1,775. Technical analysis suggested that gold could rise towards $1,797 an ounce during the day, Reuters market analyst Wang Tao said. Spot platinum, which rose to a five-month high at $1,731.5 and surged 5 percent last week, lost 0.4 percent to $1,701.24.