𝗚𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝗮𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗹

𝗚𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝗮𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗛𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗹

Spot gold fell 0.2% to $4,321.49 per ounce early on Monday. The metal dropped 3% on Friday and hit its lowest level since March 24. US gold futures for August delivery slipped 0.5% to $4,345.60 per ounce.

Last week, Comex gold futures dropped 5% to settle at $4,365 per ounce. Silver lost nearly 9% to close at $69.10 per ounce.

Key commodity movements include:

• Spot silver fell 0.4% to $67.52 per ounce
• Platinum declined 0.2% to $1,773.69
• Palladium advanced 0.5% to $1,231.51

Strong US manufacturing and labor data triggered heavy selling pressure in overseas markets. The US economy added jobs at a robust pace for a third straight month in May. Cleveland Federal Reserve President Beth Hammack said the labor market remains close to full employment. She added persistently high inflation might require the Federal Reserve to raise rates in the near future.

A firm US dollar and continued outflows from exchange-traded funds also pressured bullion prices. Oil prices climbed more than $2 per barrel. Escalating tensions in the Gulf region pushed crude higher. Market participants worry higher energy costs will feed inflation and strengthen the case for additional rate increases.

Pranav Mer serves as Vice President of Commodity and Currency Research at JM Financial Services. He said the near-term trend for gold and silver looks corrective. Analysts expect gold and silver to remain under pressure if international gold prices stay below $4,400 to $4,500 per ounce.

Other market data includes:

• China's central bank expanded gold holdings for a nineteenth straight month in May
• Reserves increased to 74.96 million fine troy ounces
• Physical demand stayed weak in India last week as buyers remained cautious
• Gold premiums in China eased slightly
• Speculative investors increased net long exposure in gold by 14,409 contracts to 111,341 contracts during the week ended June 2
• The rupee gained ground against the US dollar and weighed on domestic precious metal prices in India