Gold and Other Metals Fall as Dollar Strengthens

Gold fell as the dollar advanced, diminishing the precious metal’s appeal as an alternative investment.

The actively traded August contract for gold fell $14.70, or 1 percent, to $1,397.20 an ounce.

Gold has dropped 17 percent this year as the dollar and U.S. stocks have risen, reducing demand for safe-haven assets. The precious metal is unlikely to see any pickup in demand if stock markets remain close to their record levels, said Adam Klopfenstein, a senior market strategist at Archer Financial Services.

Other metals prices also fell.

Palladium for September delivery fell $8, or 1.1 percent, to $751.05 an ounce. Silver for July delivery dropped 31 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $22.41 an ounce. July platinum fell $6.30, or 0.4 percent, to $1,491.10 an ounce.

Only copper bucked the trend. Copper for July rose 3.85 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $3.396 a pound.

In agricultural futures trading, wheat for July delivery was little-changed at $7.09 a bushel.

Corn for the same month rose 4.75 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $6.6050 a bushel. Soybeans for July fell 3.75 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $15.2875 a bushel.

In energy trading, the price of oil fell slightly Tuesday as traders awaited the latest report on oil supplies and gasoline demand.

Benchmark oil for July delivery fell 14 cents to finish at $93.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Data showing that manufacturing activity in the U.S. slowed in the month of May boosted energy markets Monday because traders believed the weaker economy could push the Federal Reserve to continue its monetary stimulus measures.

Traders will now be monitoring fresh information on U.S. stockpiles of crude and refined products. Data from the Energy Department for the week ending May 31 is expected to show a decline of 1 million barrels in crude oil stocks and a rise of 1 million barrels in gasoline stocks, according to a survey of analysts by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill.

At the pump, the average price for a gallon of gas held steady at $3.62. That’s 3 cents higher than at this time last year.

Brent crude, a benchmark for many international oil varieties, rose $1.18 to end at $103.24 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

In other energy futures trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange:

• Wholesale gasoline added 3 cents to finish at $2.82 a gallon.
• Heating oil rose 3 cents to end at $2.86 per gallon.
• Natural gas rose 1 cent to finish at $4 per 1,000 cubic feet.