IV:Gold futures trade near 3-month low with U.S. debt talks in focus
Investing.com - Gold futures traded near a three-month low on Monday, as the U.S. moved closer to a deadline to raise the national debt ceiling or risk a sovereign debt default.
Trade volumes were likely to remain light on Monday, with U.S. markets to remain closed for the Columbus Day holiday.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery traded at USD1,275.80 a troy ounce, up 0.6%.
Prices traded in range between USD1,268.50 a troy ounce, the daily low and a session high of USD1,278.20 a troy ounce.
The December contract ended down 2.21% on Friday to settle at USD1,268.20 a troy ounce. Earlier Friday, prices fell to USD1,259.60, the weakest level since July 10.
Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,242.35 a troy ounce, the low from July 10 and resistance at USD1,311.80, the high from October 10.
Negotiations between U.S. President Barack Obama and House Republicans broke down over the weekend, fuelling concerns that a deal to raise the government borrowing limit would not be struck ahead of Thursday’s deadline to avert an unprecedented U.S. sovereign debt default.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery rose 0.55% to trade at USD21.37 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery advanced 0.65% to trade at USD3.291 a pound.
Data released earlier in the day showed that consumer price inflation in China rose 3.1% in September, above expectations for a 2.9% increase and accelerating from 2.6% in August.
The inflation report came after data over the weekend showed that China’s trade surplus narrowed sharply in September as exports declined unexpectedly, fuelling concerns over the global economy.
China’s trade surplus narrowed to USD15.2 billion last month from a surplus of USD28.6 billion in August, compared to estimates for a surplus of USD27.7 billion.
Chinese exports fell 0.3% from a year earlier, defying expectations for a 6% increase and following a 7.2% gain in August.
Market players now looked ahead to a raft of Chinese economic data later in the week, including reports on gross domestic product, industrial production and retail sales.
The Asian nation is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.
