By Polya Lesova, MarketWatch FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- Gold futures dropped more than 1% on Tuesday, as European equities rose and the euro gained against the dollar, dimming the appeal of the metal as a safe haven. Gold for June delivery fell $16.20 to $1,211.90 an ounce in electronic trading on Globex. It earlier hit an intraday low of $1,206.60 an ounce. The contract finished marginally higher on Monday. "Gold fell for a fourth day in Europe due to profit-taking, but is likely to remain supported due to continued concerns about sovereign debt contagion and currency risk," wrote analysts at bullion dealer GoldCore in a note to clients. The euro (CUR_EURUSD 1.2416, +0.0025, +0.2017%) rose 0.2% to $1.2408, as Greece said that it received 14.5 billion euros in loans from the European Commission and that its short-term financing needs are covered. The news dissipated immediate concerns over debt levels in the euro zone, which had sparked demand for gold as a safe-haven investment in recent weeks. U.S. stock futures pointed to a stronger opening on Wall Street after the government reported that housing starts jumped to an 18-month high in April. However, building permits fell 11.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 606,000, the lowest in six months. Separate data showed that the main producer price index fell 0.1% on the month, while the core rate of wholesale inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food inputs, rose 0.2%. Also on Globex, July copper futures gained 10 cents, or 3.3%, to $3.03 a pound.

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