Small losses for gold

Gold closed slightly lower on Monday as a renewed rally in the dollar and strengthening US Treasury yields reduced the precious metal’s appeal as an alternative investment.

Specifically, the gold contract for December delivery lost 10 cents, or 0.01%, to settle at $1,749.70 an ounce, although it had earlier climbed to a high of $1,757.90.

Silver was the biggest loser, with the December contract losing 15 cents, or 0.8%, to $18.67 an ounce. Copper plunged, with the December contract down 9 cents, or 2.3%, at $3.6105 a pound.

The ICE US Dollar index has gained 2.6% since the start of the month, amid expectations that the US Federal Reserve will continue its big rate hikes to tame inflation. The US 10-year yield is climbing 7 basis points to 3.108% today.

In reference to the course of the rest of the metals, October platinum closed with small losses of 0.1% at $854.30 per ounce, while December palladium also lost 0.1% at $2,130.30 per ounce.