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Gold slipped on Wednesday as a rise in the dollar prompted investors to lock in profits ahead of key U.S. data that might set direction for the currency, dealers said.
"The market feels a little bit overbought. I wouldn't be surprised to see gold and silver coming down in the next couple of weeks," said Jeremy East, head of trading at Standard Chartered Bank.
"But the fundamentals are still reasonably positive."
The dollar rose marginally against the euro, making gold costlier for holders of other currencies.
The market is awaiting a series of U.S. data that should further help to shape interest-rate expectations, including minutes due on Wednesday from the Federal Reserve's last policy meeting, and consumer prices data on Thursday.
"After a correction in base metals, people just don't have a clear picture about what's really going on. It's going to be a very tight range of $620 to $630," a dealer said.
Copper led industrial metals lower on worries over supply and demand next year,prices fell nearly one percent.
"Consolidation remains the short-term theme for gold, particularly with oil locked between $58-60 a barrel and the dollar showing signs of stabilizing," analysts report.
DULL PHYSICAL DEMAND
The physical sector was deserted, with demand in India, the world's largest gold consumer, slowing down after last month's Hindu festival of Diwali.
"Our sales have gone down by almost 75 percent to 80 percent of what it was during the same time last month," said a dealer in Chennai, a large city in the southern part of India. |
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