Dollar strength sets gold on its longest losing streak since November

Aug 19 (Reuters) – Gold prices slipped for a fifth consecutive session on Friday, in its longest losing run since November last year, as the bullion’s appeal waned with a stronger dollar and more US interest rate hikes on the horizon.

Spot gold dropped 0.6% to USD 1,748.58 per ounce by 1:47 p.m. ET (1747 GMT), having hit its lowest since July 28 earlier in the session. US gold futures settled down 0.5% at USD 1,762.9.

After posting gains in the previous four weeks, prices are down 2.9% so far this week, the most since the week of July 8.

“The main element pressuring gold and silver market is the resurgent dollar… Gold and dollar compete as safe-haven assets, higher US interest rates suggest a stronger dollar, which will add further downside to gold,” said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco Metals.

The dollar index surged and was on track for a weekly gain. Stronger dollar makes gold less attractive to overseas buyers.

The Fed needs to keep raising rates to bring high inflation under control, a string of US central bank officials said on Thursday, even as they debated how fast and how high to lift them.

The reality check on the trajectory of future Fed rate rises has brought an abrupt reversal in gold’s attempts to climb back above USD 1,800, Rupert Rowling, a market analyst at Kinesis Money, wrote in a note.

Investors will be looking downwards to below USD 1,700 as the next significant support rather than at any upward landmarks, Rowling added.

A drop in domestic prices led to improved gold buying in major consumer India.

Spot silver fell 2.2% to USD 19.09 per ounce, en route to a fall of 8.3% this week, possibly its worst since September 2020.

Slower economic growth and a Fed that keeps tightening provide an unfavorable mix for silver, UBS analysts said.

Platinum fell 1.9% to USD 893.30, while palladium was down 1.6% to USD 2,121.23, both set for weekly drops.

(Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Shailesh Kuber)