MW: Gold prices retreat slightly after three-day climb
By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold edged mildly lower Thursday, with prices retreating after a three-day run-up that had the metal closing above $1,200 an ounce for the first time in a week the prior day.
Gold futures for the front-month June contract fell $1.30 to $1,212.10 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold for August delivery, the contract with the most open positions, was also off $1.40 at $1,213.90.
The metal retreated after climbing above the $1,218.00 level as a rebound in the equity market "offered encouragement to leveraged funds that have been playing the commodity," said analysts at Action Economics.
"However, caution still remains and this was reflected by the pickup in dollar and yen buying as the European morning progressed, which took the edge off gold longs and it traded back towards its session base," the analysts added.
The euro (CUR_EURUSD 1.2229, +0.0073, +0.6005%) rose to $1.2259 one day after an official said China would not veer from its plan to diversify its foreign exchange reserves, putting to rest reports Beijing would not hold eurozone debt.
The dollar index (DXY 86.91, -0.22, -0.25%) fell to 86.728 from 87.159 in late North American trading on Wednesday.
U.S. economic data ahead includes weekly jobs claims and a forecast for first-quarter growth.
