(RTTNews) - Gold dropped on Tuesday amid light trading to return its modest gains from the previous session. February gold finished at $838.10, down $9.10 for the day. The metal traded as high as $849.80 and as low as $829.80. The dollar inched higher versus the yen and sterling but saw virtually no movement against the euro on Tuesday as traders took a breather, shrugging off a trio of key economic reports form the US. Many were away from their desks getting a head-start on the Christmas holiday. 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. On the economic front, a Commerce Department report showed that new home sales fell 2.9 percent to an annual rate of 407,000 in November from a revised October rate of 419,000. Economists had been expecting new home sales to fall by about 4.2 percent. Meanwhile, existing home sales fell 8.6 percent to an annual rate of 4.49 million in November from a downwardly revised rate of 4.91 million in October. Economists had expected sales to slip to 4.93 million from the 4.98 million originally reported for the previous month. In other economic news, the Commerce Department released its final report on gross domestic product in the third quarter, showing that the pace of contraction in economic activity during the quarter was unrevised at 0.5 percent. 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.

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