Gold prices settle lower in pullback 2-week high

[…] weeks even as a benchmark dollar index extended its losses for the week to date.

There were signals on Wednesday and early Thursday of “positive momentum regarding the U.S.-China trade dispute and possibility of a delay in the implementation of additional tariffs,” said Jeff Wright, executive vice president of GoldMining Inc.

However, President Donald Trump has now “indicated via a tweet there has not been any real progress” with regard to the dispute, he said. The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday had reported that the U.S. is reaching out to China for a new round of trade discussions, ahead of the Trump administration’s plans to place more tariffs on Chinese imports.

“China, as a major importer of gold, has seen a slackening of physical demand in conjunction with […] of $1,218. The contract settled at $1,210.90 Wednesday—the highest since Aug. 29, according to FactSet data.

A leading dollar index gave up early gains in the wake of global central bank news and Thursday’s U.S. economic data.

A measure of consumer-level inflation climbed but did so at a slower pace, while the weekly check-in on jobless benefits claims slipped but held near a 49-year low.

The Bank of England, meanwhile, left rates untouched as it noted some concern for slowing global growth. The European Central Bank, as well, stood pat on policy as expected. Turkey’s central bank raised a key lending rate in an effort to thwart the deterioration of its currency’s value.

Against that back, the dollar weakened, but failed to give dollar-denominated gold a boost. […] after hours Wednesday shortly after the release of the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book revealed weaker growth in August as the overall domestic economy expanded at a “moderate pace.” The Fed is expected to nudge its own benchmark interest rate higher yet again when it meets later this month and likely in December as well, a dollar-positive and gold-negative development.

Yet with […] Peter Hug, global trading director at Kitco Metals. “Interest rates still favor the dollar but any conciliation on the trade front should mitigate dollar flows a safe-haven perspective.”

“This is certainly not an all clear for gold, but it looks like the bottom has been established in August,” Hug added. “The shorts will become increasingly restless should gold break above $1,212 and given the amount of short interest in the market, the exit door is growing smaller.”

Meanwhile, December silver US:SIZ8 fell 0.3% to settle at $14.244 an ounce. The September front-month contract settled earlier this week at $14.05, the lowest since January 2016.

“Silver has lost its close correlation to gold as it is increasingly seen as an industrial metal more aligned with base metals,” said Richard Hayes, chief executive officer of Australia-based The Perth Mint. “Low industrial production this year meant low demand for base metals and silver suffered accordingly.”

December copper US:HGZ8 climbed 0.3% to $2.683 a pound, while October platinum

US:PLV8 added 0.4% to $803.30 an ounce and October palladium

US:PAV8 finished at $968.70 an ounce, up 0.4%.

Among the exchange-traded funds, the SPDR Gold Shares GLD, […]