2023-06-20 16:30:08 ET
Gold prices tumbled to three-month lows Tuesday, pressured by strength in the U.S. dollar following upbeat data on May housing starts and building permits, while investors looked ahead to testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell starting Wednesday.
Construction on new homes in the U.S. climbed 21.7% in May, rising to a 1.63M annual pace last month from 1.34M in April and well above analyst consensus for 1.39M housing starts, while building permits jumped 5.2% to a 1.49M rate, topping Wall Street's 1.42M estimate.
The data suggested the economy remains healthy, meaning the Federal Reserve would be more likely to raise its benchmark interest rate again in July.
Front-month Comex gold ( XAUUSD:CUR ) for June delivery closed -1.2% to $1,935.50/oz, its lowest settlement value since March 16, and June Comex silver ( XAGUSD:CUR ) ended -3.6% to $23.193/oz.
ETFs: ( NYSEARCA: GLD ), ( NYSEARCA: GDX ), ( GDXJ ), ( IAU ), ( NUGT ), ( PHYS ), ( GLDM ), ( AAAU ), ( SGOL ), ( BAR ), ( OUNZ ), ( SLV ), ( PSLV ), ( SIVR ), ( SIL ), ( SILJ ), ( SLVP )
Commerzbank analysts lowered their gold price estimate for H2 2023 by $50 to $2K/oz, anticipating another rate hike by the Fed in July and no rate cuts until next year's Q2.
More analysis on gold:
- Gold's Bullish Potential Amid Inflationary Adjustments
- VanEck Is Bullish On Gold, Saying The Precious Metal Will Retake $2,075/oz
- GDX: Sound Leverage To Gold/Silver, With Money Flows Turning Higher
For further details see:
Gold slides to three-month lows on strong U.S. housing data, higher dollar