Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold tumbled 1.3% to close at a one-week low under $1,325 as the dollar surged on falling North Korea tensions, eroding demand for alternative stores of value.

Chinese state media reports that North Korea may dismantle its nuclear programs and open a dialog with the US to improve relations and ease tensions on the Korean peninsula. The surprising news came after Kim Jong-un paid an unexpected visit to Beijing to set the stage for talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-in next month and later with President Trump.

Whether or not the mercurial North Korean leader is serious, the dollar surged 1.4% against the yen and 0.8% against a basket of rivals as investors perceived less need for safe-haven currencies. It was the biggest one-day jump against the yen in a year. A rising dollar pressures gold and other commodities priced in it for global trade by making them more expensive for users of other currencies.

Also weighing on gold, oil fell 1.3% on excess US petroleum supplies. Gold often trades in sympathy with oil as a hedge against energy-related inflation.

The other precious metals were also lower, with silver falling 1.7% while platinum and palladium lost 1.2% and 0.9%, respectively.

At the Comex close: April gold tumbled $17.80 to $1,324.20; May silver lost 29 cents to $16.25; July platinum fell $12 to $934.70; and June palladium dropped 8.60 to $963.20 an ounce.