Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold dipped 0.3% to hold above $1,770 as upbeat data and gains in stocks and the dollar undercut demand for alternative assets.

Orders for long-lasting goods like autos rose nearly 16% in June, beating forecasts and lending hope for a rebound in manufacturing after historic plunges in April and May. Core orders, often considered a proxy for business investment, rose 2.3%.

Filings for first-time jobless benefits fell last week, marking 12th straight weeks of declines. But the totals remain staggering, with another 2.2 million Americans seeking relief through traditional and emergency federal programs. Continuing claims declined slightly to 19.5 million.

Wall Street rallied behind the durable goods data and gains by financial firms because of expectations that the Fed will ease in regulatory policies about stress tests for banks. All three major US indexes gained around 1%.

The dollar picked up 0.3%, pressuring gold and other commodities priced in it for global trade.

The other precious metals were mostly lower, with platinum and palladium dropping 0.2% and 2.3%, respectively, while silver added 1.3%.

At the Comex close: August gold dipped $4.50 to $1,770.60; July silver rose 22 cents to $17.90; July slipped $1.90 to $802.70; and September palladium lost $43.40 to $1,845.10 an ounce.