By Virginia Harrison, MarketWatch
SYDNEY (MarketWatch) — Gold futures extended losses in electronic trading Wednesday, in a lackluster session for the broader metals complex as investors looked ahead to a summit of European leaders.
Gold for August delivery GCQ2 -0.32% slipped $1.60, or 0.1%, to $1,573.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange during Asian trading hours.
The precious metal declined in Tuesday’s session as investors absorbed more negative European developments ahead of a two-day meeting, which begins on Thursday.
Germany was unenthusiastic about a plan to tighten fiscal integration across the euro zone and European banking union ahead of the summit. Read more on the EU's fiscal roadmap.
The strain in Europe has created some upside for gold in recent weeks, as global uncertainty fuelled demand for the metal as a safe store of value.
Elsewhere in the metals suite, July platinum PLN2 -0.48% shed $2.50, or 0.2%, to $1,424.30 an ounce, while September palladium added $1.25, or 0.2%, to $594.95 an ounce.
July silver SIN2 -0.33% traded steady at $27.04 an ounce, and July copper HGN2 -0.29% was also unchanged at $3.31 per pound.
Virginia Harrison is a MarketWatch reporter based in Sydney.
