Gold prices were trading lower Wednesday, responding to a strengthening U.S. dollar that was weighing on commodity prices.
Bullion’s value has waxed and waned in lockstep with the dollar lately as the U.S. currency staged its sharpest weekly gain since April.
A resurgence in the greenback is viewed by commodity investors as making purchasing the yellow metal less compelling for overseas buyers and undercutting demand.
“Gold will completely resume its traditional role as a safe-haven if the dollar rebound has run its course,” wrote Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda in a Tuesday research note.
However, the dollar was up 0.2% at 94.081, as measured by the ICE U.S. Dollar Index
DXY,
on Wednesday morning.
The move for the dollar comes after an acrimonious presidential debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, as the race for the White House heats up in the U.S., leading up the Nov. 3 election.
On Wednesday, December gold
GCZ20,
retreated $13, or 0.7%, at $1,890.20 an ounce, after rising 1.1% on Tuesday.
December silver
SIZ20,
was trading 62 cents, or 2.5%, lower at $23.83 an ounce, after a 3.6% gain in the previous session.
For the month, gold has lost 4.5%, but advanced nearly 5% over the three-month period, according to FactSet data, tracking the most-active contract. Meanwhile, silver is on track to shed nearly 17% in September, but has rallied by 28% so far this quarter.