Gold futures slipped anew early Tuesday, remaining below the closely watched $1,200 line, as a leading dollar index posted mild gains.
December gold GCZ8, -0.42% was off $1.20, or 0.1%, at $1,198.50 an ounce. The contract is down roughly 0.2% so far this week, a path that could lead to a ninth weekly decline in the past 10.
“There have been no major business news developments early this week [for the precious metals markets], which is allowing the overall bearish technical charts to invite the technical sellers to step in,” said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst with Kitco.com.
Wyckoff pinned the key target for gold bulls at resistance of $1,220.70, over $20 away from current levels. Bears, on the other hand, are watching for a push below $1,167.10 to confirm their viewpoint.
More broadly, market participants are focused on a mix of trade headlines and economic data, as the talks with Canada on the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement are in full swing. Reports also said the U.S. and European Union may be getting closer to a trade agreement after recent meetings.
On the data front, JOLTS at 10 a.m. Eastern, as well as a few speeches from Federal Reserve bankers in the afternoon. See Economic Calendar.
With trade issues and the Fed’s interest-rate picture in play, the ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +0.15% was up 0.1% at 95.224. U.S. rates continue to outrun their big-economy counterparts, pushing up the dollar. Greenback moves then impact metals trading, with the latter mostly priced in the U.S. unit.
Don’t miss: Case for dollar bulls intact ahead of central bank meetings
In other metals trading, December silver SIZ8, -0.64% fell 4 cents, or 0.2%, to $14.145 an ounce. December copper HGZ8, -0.46% eased 0.4% to $2.617 a pound.
October platinum PLV8, -0.63% fell 0.3% to $787.40 an ounce, while December palladium PAZ8, -0.41% shed 0.3% to $961.70 an ounce.
Among the exchange-traded funds, the SPDR Gold Shares GLD, -0.07% fell 0.3% in early action, as the iShares Silver Trust SLV, -0.08% gave up 0.4%. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF GDX, -1.51% fell nearly 0.3%.
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