BENGALURU, April 30 (Reuters) - Gold prices were little
changed on Monday as investor interest in the yellow metal
dropped as the U.S. dollar steadied and there were signs of
easing tensions on the Korean peninsula, reducing the safe-haven
demand for gold.
Spot gold fell 0.1 percent to $1,320.80 per ounce at
0428 GMT. U.S. gold futures for June delivery declined
0.1 percent to $1,322 per ounce. Gold is set for a slight
monthly decline of 0.2 percent for April
"Gold is still tracked very closely with the dollar," said
Helen Lau, analyst at Argonaut Securities.
The dollar index , which touched a 3-1/2-month high of
91.986 on Friday, was steady at 91.552.
Markets were mostly quiet on Monday with Japan, China and
India on holiday and as much of Asia will be closed on Tuesday.
"Geopolitical risks also seem to be turning around...
Everybody want to comes to the table and negotiate a deal," Lau
added.
At their summit on Friday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in declared they would
take steps to formally end the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended
only with a truce, and work towards the "denuclearisation" of
the Korean peninsula.
Separately, a delegation of U.S. officials, including
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and President Donald Trump's
top economic and trade advisers are all expected in China later
this week for trade negotiations.
Gold is often used as a store of value during times of
financial or political uncertainty.
"Gold positions continued to be rolled back as the markets
are adjusting portfolios given the increased potential for the
dollar to rise in the weeks ahead becomes a reality," said
Stephen Innes, APAC trading head at OANDA.
Hedge funds and money managers trimmed their net long
position in COMEX gold contracts and switched to a net long
position in silver contracts in the week to April 24, U.S.
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data showed on
Friday.
Spot gold looks neutral in a range of $1,317-$1,326 per
ounce, and an escape could suggest a direction, according to
Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
Among other precious metals silver fell 0.1 percent
to $16.47 per ounce but is set to rise 0.9 percent for the
month.
Platinum fell 0.3 percent, to $907.60 per ounce and
was on track to record its third consecutive monthly fall, down
2.1 percent.
Palladium was down 0.5 percent to $969 per ounce and
is set for a 2 percent monthly gain.
