Investing.com -- Gold prices edged higher on Monday, with a weak set of durable goods orders from the U.S. keeping it supported at the higher end of its recent range.
However, trading was light and didn’t pick up after data showing a rebound in new home sales in November (partly because October’s figures were revised down).
By 11:05 AM ET (1605 GMT), gold futures for delivery on the Comex exchange were up 0.4% at $1,486.45 a troy ounce, while spot gold was up 0.3% at $1,482.78.
Gold was also reportedly supported by stockpiling ahead of the Chinese New Year celebrations in January, as well as by data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission showing that speculative positions rose again last week, showing no sign of profit-taking as the end of a profitable year approaches for many portfolio buyers.
By contrast, retail buying in India, another key market, has clearly suffered from high prices – the more since the late end to the monsoon has damaged crops and hit rural incomes, according to Mukesh Kumar of the World Gold Council’s market intelligence group. Net gold imports in November were down 17% on the year, Kumar noted.
Silver futures, meanwhile, continued their recent outperformance. They rose 1.3% to $17.45 an ounce, just off an intraday high of $17.48 that was their highest in seven weeks. Silver has now risen 5.2% this month.
Platinum futures rose even more, by 2.1% to $932.50.