Gold falls as dollar strengthens, shares rally

Dubai - The negative correlation between equities and gold has started to form again, an expert said.

Gold prices in Dubai fell on Tuesday as the dollar firmed and as shares rose on hopes of a rebound in China economic activity.

The 24k quoted at Dh195.75 per gram against the previous close of Dh197.25 on Monday. The 22k gold also declined to Dh183.75 per gram against Dh185.25. Spot gold fell 0.5 per cent to $1,613.40 per ounce by 0327 GMT. It gained about 6.4 per cent for the quarter, and about 1.8 per cent for the month.

US gold futures eased 0.2 per cent to $1,615.80. "The dollar, yields, and a better equity market performance are pressuring gold," said Stephen Innes, chief market strategist at financial services firm AxiCorp, adding that the negative correlation between equities and gold has started to form again.

Among other precious metals, platinum rose 0.5 per cent to $726.51, but was on track to post its biggest quarterly percentage loss since 2008. The world's largest platinum producers Anglo American Platinum, Sibanye-Stillwater and Impala Platinum have declared force majeure on contracts after a three-week national lockdown in South Africa forced operations to close.

Palladium fell 0.6 per cent to $2,313.94 an ounce, while silver shed 0.3 per cent to $14.07, and was set to post its worst quarter since June 2013.

With inputs from Reuters

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