Gold Prices Flat Line

Gold prices trim their gains on the back of a stronger U.S. dollar.
By Alix Steel ,

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Gold prices were sinking as the U.S. dollar rallied.

Gold for April delivery was falling $6.70 to $1,111.30 an ounce at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices have traded as high as $1,126.40 and as low as $1,108.50. The

U.S. dollar index

was rising 0.46% to $79.35.

Gold Prices Flat Line

Gold paired back some of its previous gains after the

Automatic Data Processing's National Employment Report

said the private sector lost a better than expected 22,000 jobs in January. The ADP number is seen as a preview to Friday's nonfarm payroll report. Although analysts were anticipating a loss of 30,000 jobs, the job losses along with a weaker-than-expected non-manufacturing activity report were weighing on markets and curbing investors' risk appetite for commodities.

Also contributing to gold's slight decline was light profit-taking. The precious metal managed to settle over the critical $1,100 level for two consecutive days leading investors to rake in gains. But for the short term, many analysts expect gold to continue to trade in opposition to the U.S. dollar.

"There's a reassessment going on about whether the dollar should be strengthening or weakening," says Nicholas Brooks, head of research and investment strategy for ETF Securities. "My own view is that the dollar is likely to strengthen in the near term ...

and risk aversion will likely come back ... and that will likely put downward pressure on gold."

Silver prices

were sinking 36 cents to $16.8 while copper was down 12 cents to $2.96. More car troubles from Toyota were hurting platinum and palladium which were down at $1,573 and $437, respectively.

Toyota

announced that Prius owners are also complaining about brake problems. This comes after the company was forced to halt sales of select models last week in the U.S. due to similar safety concerns. This could hurt demand for platinum and palladium, which are used in car manufacturing.

Mining stocks, a more leveraged way to

invest in gold

, were mixed.

Barrick Gold

(ABX)

and

Newmont Mining

(NEM) - Get Report

were trading at $35.95 and $45.31, respectively.

Richard O'Brien, Newmont's CEO, reportedly said that gold could hit $1,350 an ounce in 2010 but that prices will be volatile. Large-cap miner

Kinross Gold

(KGC) - Get Report

was up slightly to $17.36.

Shares of

Hecla Mining

(HL) - Get Report

were rising 0.59% to $5.12 after the stock was upgraded to buy from neutral at

UBS

. The firm also upgraded

Eldorado Gold

(EGO) - Get Report

from neutral to buy. The stock was sinking 2.68% to $12.35.

Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold

(FCX) - Get Report

was also lower by 2.88% to $72.41. This comes after a

Citigroup analyst upgraded

the stock to a buy with a $95 price target.

Shares of the

SPDR Gold Shares

(GLD) - Get Report

were flat at $108.75.

>>Slideshow: How to Invest in Gold

>>More stories on gold investing

--

Written by Alix Steel in New York

.

Alix joined TheStreet.com TV in February 2007. Previously, she held positions in film and theater production, management, and legal administration. Alix has a degree in communications and theater from Northwestern University.

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