Gold Futures Fall, Dollar Firms

Benchmark bullion futures are losing $19.80 at $905.40 an ounce.
By Simon Constable ,

Gold prices took a tumble Wednesday as oil prices slid back and the dollar firmed.

Benchmark bullion futures were losing $19.80 at $905.40 an ounce in recent action on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The

iShares Comex Gold Trust

(IAU) - Get Report

was marked down 1.4%.

"It seems like the buying momentum dried up," says Jon Nadler, a metals analyst at Montreal-based bullion dealer Kitco. "Maybe you have a $100 upside potential, but a downside risk of $200 to $300, so speculators don't see the reason to buy."

The price of bullion has risen from around $670 an ounce last summer to an all-time high of about $1,030 in March before retreating.

In line with the pullback, gold holdings by

streetTracks Gold Shares

(GLD) - Get Report

, the largest of the exchange-traded funds that hold bullion, slipped by about 20 tons April 21 to 623 tons.

"I think that 20 tons sold in one day certainly makes a difference," adds Nadler.

Holdings by the trust totaled 515 tons at the end of last August before peaking in March at more than 660 tons.

As for the miners, shares of

Newmont Mining

(NEM) - Get Report

were sliding 1.8%, while

Kinross Gold

(KGC) - Get Report

was skidding 5.5%.

Gold and copper miner

Freeport-McMoRan

(FCX) - Get Report

had a much better than expected quarterly profit and revenue report, but its shares were little changed.

Meanwhile, the U.S. currency was slightly firmer against the major currencies. One euro was buying $1.5884 vs. $1.5996 previously. The dollar was buying 103.2 Japanese yen, up from 102.92 yen previously. The British pound was selling for $1.979, down from $1.9947.

The currency exchange-traded funds were mixed. The

CurrencyShares Euro Trust

(FXE) - Get Report

and the

CurrencyShares Japanese Yen Trust

(FXY) - Get Report

were rising 0.8% and 0.2%, respectively. The

CurrencyShares British Pound Sterling

(FXB) - Get Report

was off 0.6%.

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