Daily Gold Update

Source: Dr. Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— Gold slid 0.6% to close at a five-week low near $1,304 after stronger-than-expected U.S. durable goods data reduced safe-haven demand. Orders for long-lasting manufactured goods rebounded by 2.2% in February, suggesting that the earlier slowdown in U.S. factories during the harsh winter may be drawing to a close.

The strong data raised speculation that the Fed may be inclined to further reduce asset purchases as the economy revives, which would strength the dollar and decrease the need for alternatives stores of value like gold. Risk appetite initial rose but then fell back, leaving the Dow with close to a triple-digit loss, after President Obama warned that Russia is "challenging the world order" and will face additional sanctions.

The other precious metals followed gold lower, with silver and platinum dropping 1% and palladium 1.1%. At the Comex close: April gold slid $8 to $1,303.40. May silver dropped 20 cents to $19.78; April platinum fell $14.40 to $1,406.50; and June palladium shed $8.25 to $781.15 an ounce.