Daily Gold Update

Source: Marketwatch

San Francisco— Gold futures on Tuesday settled at their lowest in nearly five weeks as the metal felt the pinch of a rising dollar and tracked a selloff for other commodities. Gold for June delivery declined $10.60, or 0.7%, to settle at $1,480 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. An overnight rebound fizzled, sending gold to its lowest settlement since April 14. Investors left commodities and other so-called riskier trades to go �into cash or cash-equivalent,� said Michael K. Smith, with T & K Futures in Florida. �Everybody got their selling shoes on.� Precious metals could be in for rough times as investors with bets prices would go higher leave the trade, he added.

Gold enjoys a long-term upward trend on inflation and currency devaluation, but silver is likely on its way lower, Smith said. Silver for July delivery slipped 64 cents, or 1.9%, to $33.49 an ounce. That was silver�s lowest settlement since Feb. 25. The dollar index, which compares the U.S. unit to a basket of six currencies, retreated 0.2% to 75.451. During metals� floor trading, however, it was considerably higher. A stronger dollar is negative for commodities as it makes them more expensive to holders of other currencies, and, in the case of precious metals, takes away fear of currency debasement as a reason to pile up on them. See full story.