Gold futures on Monday were trading lower, under pressure despite a decline in U.S. stocks and as the the dollar remained firm to start a holiday-shortened week.
“A stronger U.S. dollar index recently remains a negative element for the metals markets,” wrote Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco.com.
Gold for April delivery
GC00,
-0.59%
GCJ21,
-0.59%
was off $10.30, or 0.6%, to trade at $1,721.40 an ounce, following a 0.5% weekly slump.
Commodity markets and other financial markets will be closed on Good Friday this week.
May silver
SIK21,
-1.07%
SI00,
-1.07%,
meanwhile, shed 29 cents, or 1.2%, to trade at $24.83 an ounce, after posting 4.6% decline for the week on Friday.
Bullion’s decline on Monday come amid news that a large investment fund, Archegos Capital Management, had dumped $30 billion in holdings, including big positions in ViacomCBS
VIAC,
-27.31%
and Discovery
DISCA,
-27.45%,
making some investors concerned about contagion.
“If the markets to see a contagion effect, gold and silver markets could quickly see bids coming in,” wrote Wyckoff.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar was holding steady, up less than 0.1% at 92.79, as measured by the ICE U.S. Dollar Index
DXY,
+0.00%.
A stronger dollar can weigh on dollar-priced assets, making them more expensive for overseas buyers. The 10-year Treasury note
TMUBMUSD10Y,
1.649%
was yielding 1.65%, retreating by about 2 basis points. Bond prices rise as yields fall.
