At a two-week low, gold plummeted by 5.8%

Gold closed lower in two weeks on Tuesday as some initial signs of progress in talks between Russia and Ukraine dampened the attractiveness of the precious metal, which is considered a safe haven in times of high uncertainty.

In particular, the April gold contract lost $ 27.60, or 1.4%, and closed at $ 1,912.20 an ounce, slipping to $ 1,888.30 at the low of the day – the lowest level since 25 February.

The June contract, the most active, fell $ 26.70, or 1.4%, to $ 1,918 an ounce. Both gold contracts closed at the lowest level since March 16.

May futures fell 46 cents, or 1.8%, to $ 24,736 an ounce, after falling to $ 24,045 – the lowest level since February 25.

The Russian news agency TASS quoted Russian Deputy Defense Minister as saying that the army would “drastically reduce” its operations outside Kyiv and Chernihiv. This sparked a wave of optimism about the course of the talks afterwards, keeping alive the hopes for a ceasefire agreement.

May copper, meanwhile, closed with small gains of 0.1% at $ 4,731 a pound.

As for the rest of the metals, April platinum lost 1.8% at $ 973 per ounce, while the July contract, the most active contract now, fell 1.5% to $ 978.80 per ounce.

Finally, palladium for June closed at $ 2,112.70 an ounce, diving 5.8%.