(RTTNews) - The price of gold slipped below $1,750 Monday morning even as the U.S. dollar was trading marginally lower versus a basket of currencies.
Gold for February delivery, the most actively traded contract, shed $7.90 to $1,743.40 an ounce. Last week gold rose nearly 4 percent on speculation that the European Central Bank will buy bonds once political leaders agree to closer fiscal unity in the euro zone.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, were unchanged at 1,297.93 tons.
This morning, the U.S. dollar continued to linger around its two-week low versus the euro and sterling, while ticking lower against the yen and trading flat versus the Swiss franc.
In economic news, euro zone retail sales recovered in October, data from Eurostat revealed. The volume of retail trade grew 0.4 percent month-on-month, partially offsetting 0.6 percent drop in September. Economists had expected only 0.1 percent growth for October.
Meanwhile, activity in the German service sector grew less than initially estimated in November, final data from a survey by Markit Economics showed. The seasonally adjusted business activity index for the service sector came in at 50.3 in November, lower than 51.4 recorded in the flash estimates and the October reading of 50.6.
Elsewhere, the price of silver moved up, while platinum was flat in morning deals.
From the U.S., the Institute for Supply Management will release the results of its non-manufacturing survey at 10 a.m. ET. The index is likely to show a reading of 53.9 for November after it edged down 0.1 point to 52.9 in October.
Simultaneously, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on factory goods orders for October. Economists estimate a 0.3 percent drop in orders for factory goods following a 0.7 percent increase in September.
