Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold edged down 0.1% to close under $1,788 after the dollar rose on soft data and growth worries, prompting traders to take profits from the metal's 2.2% rise over the previous two sessions.

US retail sales tumbled 1.1% in July, nearly four times most forecasts, as government stimulus faded, and Americans spent less at restaurants and bars because of the fast-spreading Delta variant of the coronavirus. A sharp drop in auto sales, driven by reduced availability, also fueled the decline.

Home builder confidence fell the lowest level in 13 months as high prices for construction materials and growing uncertainty about the recovery are taking prospective buyers out of the market.

On the positive side of the ledger, US industrial output rose 0.9% last month, the fastest pace since March. Excluding autos, however, manufacturing rose only 0.1%.

Equities rolled back on the disappointing data, with all three major US indexes dropping around 1%.

The dollar rallied for a second day, adding 0.4% against major rivals as Forex traders sought the perceived safety of the US currency. A rising dollar typically weighs on gold and other commodities by making them pricier overseas.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields slid on the shift out of risk sentiment, backstopping gold's decline by decreasing the opportunity cost for holding it instead of bonds as a safe-haven asset.

The other precious metals were also lower, with silver dropping 0.6% while platinum and palladium fell 2.7% and 3.9%, respectively.

At the Comex close: December gold dipped $2 to $1,787.80; September silver lost 13 cents to $23.66; October platinum dropped $27.30 to $993.80; and September palladium fell $102.40 to $2,495.60 an ounce.