The U.S. dollar advanced against a basket of foreign currencies Tuesday morning, helping to keep a lid on precious metals ahead of the U.S. equity market open. Gold traded near unchanged at $1,545 per ounce, while silver dipped $0.10 to $43.89 per ounce.
The stability in gold and silver follows yesterday’s substantial declines, as investors and traders used the death of Osama bin Laden and the CME’s latest silver margin requirement increase as catalysts to sell precious metals.
The stronger dollar pressured cyclical commodities as well Tuesday morning, as oil dropped $1.15 to $112.37 per barrel.
Most equity markets in Asia and Europe posted modest losses, helping to send S&P 500 futures lower by 3.75 points to 1,354.00.
