(RTTNews) - Gold prices ended higher on Monday, reversing some of a slump from late last week. Gold for February delivery closed at $847.20, up $9.80 for the session. Prices reached as high as $853.00 in intraday trading.
The dollar was little-changed in quiet dealing against other major currencies on Monday. Many traders were away from their desks getting a head-start on the Christmas holiday, while others looked ahead to Tuesday's pivotal housing and personal spending data.
Last week, the dollar was hammered versus most other majors after the Federal Reserve slashed its key interest rate to a record low range between zero and 0.25 percent.
China became the latest to cut rates on Monday, reducing its key interest rates for the fifth time since September. The People's Bank of China slashed one-year lending rate by 27 basis points to 5.31% from 5.58%. The central bank also cut one-year deposit rate to 2.25% from 2.52%.
In other commodity trading, crude oil plunged below $40 on February's first day as the front-month contract. Light sweet crude finished at $39.91, down $2.45 for the day.
Despite losing more than $23 on Friday, gold closed the week up $17.20. This marked the sixth time in seven weeks that gold has finished higher. The metal hit a two-month high of $879.60 last week.
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