Daily Gold Update

Source: MarketWatch

New York— Gold futures fell for a seventh straight session Tuesday, closing at their lowest level this year as falling crude-oil prices reduced investment demand for gold as a hedge against inflation.

Other metals contracts also came under selling pressure.

Gold for December delivery sank $10.50, or 1.3%, to end at $792 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the lowest closing level this year. It dropped to $780.20 earlier, the weakest intraday level since November. All told, the benchmark gold contract has slumped $45.20 an ounce in the seven trading sessions since Aug. 28.

Limiting gold's gains was a weakening dollar. The greenback retreated Tuesday, after rising to its highest in a year against the euro in the previous session. The dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against other major currencies, fell 0.5%. A weaker dollar tends to push up gold prices as it increases gold's appeal as an investment alternative. But the dollar's loss didn't boost gold Tuesday. "With little speculative interest at the present time, there's little to drive the metal significantly higher," said Brien Lundin, editor of Gold Newsletter. See full story.