MW: Gold falls below $910 on reduced safe-haven needs
Gold futures fell Wednesday for a third straight session to below $910 an ounce on reduced safe-haven needs, as investors continued to move funds away from the metal.
Gold for April delivery fell $11.80, or 1.3%, to $905 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. It has lost about $25, or 2.7%, this week, and is now about $100 lower than its recent high above $1,000 hit on Feb. 20.
Gold's weakness came from "diminished haven needs as asset allocation spreads in the markets to other areas," said George Gero, a precious metals trader for RBC Capital Markets' global futures division.
Holdings in the SPDR Gold Shares , the biggest gold ETF, stood at the record high of 1,069.05 tons on Tuesday, unchanged from a day ago, according to the latest data from the fund.
Wednesday's losses came despite data showing U.S. consumer prices moved up for a second straight month. Some investors buy gold to hedge against inflation.
With energy prices rising at the fastest rate in seven months, the CPI increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% in February, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.
Energy prices increased 3.3% in February, the government said, including an 8.3% gain in gasoline prices. Food prices fell 0.1%, the first decline in nearly three years. See full story.
Investors were also awaiting the Federal Reserve's statement later today at the end of a two-day meeting.
In equity markets, Asian markets ended mostly higher Wednesday as most financial stocks staged another rally, but Europe stocks flattened out after an early rise. In the U.S., futures indicated a weaker start on Wall Street.
In other metals trading, silver for May delivery fell 1.1% to $12.535 an ounce, while April platinum lost 0.5% $1,046.70 an ounce. The June contract for palladium lost 1.2% to $195.50 an ounce. Meanwhile, May copper sank 0.7% to $1.7125 a pound.