The price of gold was paring recent losses Tuesday morning as the U.S. dollar turned weak versus a basket of currencies.
Gold for December delivery, the most actively traded contract, edged up $5.50 to $1,716.30 an ounce. Yesterday, gold ended lower due mostly to the absence of catalysts with low volumes even as the dollar turned higher against some major currencies boosted by the impending Hurricane Sandy. The New York trading floor remained closed due to evacuation orders on the threat posed by Hurricane Sandy.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, were unchanged at 1,336.30 tons.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar was easing from its 2-week high versus the euro and ticking lower against sterling. The buck continued to slip from its 4-month high versus the yen and trading lower against the Swiss franc.
In economic news, euro zone economic confidence dropped less than expected in October, monthly survey from the European Commission showed. The corresponding index came in at 84.5, down from 85.2 in the prior month. Economists had forecast the index to drop to 84.4. The marked decreases in industry and construction outweighed the improvement in the retail trade sector.
Germany's unemployment increased by 20,000 in October from a month ago, data from the Federal Labor Agency showed. It follows an increase of 12,000 each in September and August. Economists were expecting a monthly increase of 10,000 for October.
The prices of silver and platinum were ticking higher in morning deals.
From the U.S., the Standard & Poor's will release its S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices for the month of August. Economists expect the index to have risen to 1.9 percent from the last month's 1.2 percent.
