(RTTNews) - The price of gold was extending losses Tuesday morning as the U.S. dollar was trading firm after Moody's Investor Services warned that France's top-notch credit rating could be at a risk.
Gold for December delivery, the most actively traded contract, lost $17.20 to $1,659.40 an ounce. Yesterday, gold ended marginally lower amid a steady U.S. dollar.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, were unchanged at 1,227.51 tons.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar continued to pare recent losses versus the euro and the Swiss franc, while trading flat against sterling. The buck was easing versus the yen.
In economic news from the euro zone, U.K. annual inflation accelerated more than expected in September, data from the Office for National Statistics showed. Consumer price inflation rose to 5.2 percent from 4.5 percent in August. It also remained above the 4.9 percent consensus forecast.
Elsewhere, confidence among German investors dropped to its weakest level in nearly three years in October. The German economic sentiment index fell to -48.3 from -43.3 in September, the ZEW Center for European Economic Research said. The score was well below the consensus forecast of -45.
Elsewhere, the prices of silver and platinum were trading lower in morning deals.
In economic news from the U.S., the Labor Department is scheduled to release its producer price inflation report. Economists expect the headline index to show a 0.3 percent increase for September, while the core producer price index is expected to have risen by a more modest 0.1 percent.
Later during the session, the National Association of Home Builders will release the results of its October survey on homebuilders' confidence. The consensus estimates call for an increase in the index to 15 from 14 in September.
Traders will also look to get cues from the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech to a Boston Fed Bank conference on the long term effects of the great recession.
