Gold eased back following the spike after last week’s strangely disappointing US non-farm payroll numbers.
After rising above US$1,250 soon after the monthly jobs data was released, the price had eased back to US$1,248 today.
Traders said one reason for the retreat is that the jobs number may be an outlier and influenced by the terrible weather in the US over Christmas.
Many economists still expect the US Federal Reserve to pick up the pace of its tapering policy later this year, which is likely to boost the dollar and raise interest rates, both of which in theory will hurt gold.
Not so far, though, as today, the dollar slid to a three-week low against the yen ahead of US retail sales figures tomorrow, which mayalso have an impact on how the Federal Reserve’s thinking.
Commerzbank added that the latest increase in the gold price is likely to have been “speculatively driven”, with net long positions in gold at a seven-week high though still at a “very low level historically speaking”.
Elsewhere, gold production in China, the world’s number one producer, rose 7% to 392.000 metric tons in the first 11 months of 2013, according to data from the China Gold Association.
Silver was flay US$20.88 as was platinum at US41,432 despite the threat of industrial unrest in South Africa moving closer.
Major movers
Randgold Resources up 94p at 3,806p
Fresnillo up 19p at 698p
Anglo American up 26p at 1,275p