Gold futures edged higher Thursday in an attempt to break a four-day losing streak, although the dollar remained likely to continue setting the tone.
Gold for June delivery on Comex GCM5, +0.04% rose $2.40, or 0.2%, to $1,188 an ounce, while July silver SIN5, +0.29% rose 8.8 cents, or 0.5%, to $16.735 an ounce.
The U.S. dollar, meanwhile, was little changed overall, with the ICE U.S. dollar index DXY, +0.19% a measure of the currency against a basket of six major rivals, flat on the day after data showed first-time claims for U.S. jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week. The index has jumped 1.4% over the course of the week, however, weighing on gold and other commodities priced in the currency.
Read: What the dollar can and can’t do to this bull market.
Dollar strength has followed stronger U.S. economic data that has reignited debate over the timing of the first Federal Reserve interest-rate hike in nearly a decade. A stronger dollar is a negative for dollar-priced commodities as it makes them more expensive to users of other currencies.
“For the coming months, we anticipate price weakness in precious metals. This is mainly because we expect a higher U.S. dollar and higher U.S. interest rate expectations to lead to further investor position liquidation,” wrote Georgette Boele, strategist at ABN Amro, in a note. “We also remain negative on gold for 2016 for the same reasons.”
Boele said that while dollar action has been calling the tune, a strong trend has yet to emerge.
“Every time gold prices pop up above $1,200 per ounce, gold bulls expect a start of a new uptrend, while gold bears expect a restart of the downtrend when they see $1,180 per ounce,” she said.
Jeff Reeves: Gold can glitter if stocks hit the rocks.
In other metals trade, July platinum PLN5, -0.06% fell 70 cents, or 0.1%, to $1,118.30 an ounce, while June palladium PAM5, -0.46% lost $3.60, or 0.5%, to $781.40 an ounce.
July copper HGN5, -0.04% was unchanged at $2.7685 a pound.
