Gold Falls as Trade Tariffs Begin

Investing.com – Gold prices were lower on Friday as the U.S. dollar weakened and U.S. trade tariffs against China went into effect.

Comex for August delivery decreased 0.21% to $1,256.20 a troy ounce as of 6:06 AM ET (10:06 GMT).

U.S. tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese goods went into effect at 12:01 AM ET (04:01 GMT) on Friday, with additional tariffs on another $16 billion expected to go into effect in two weeks. Meanwhile U.S. President Donald Trump has given instructions to identify a further $300 billion in possible Chinese goods.

China previously said it would retaliate with tariffs on $34 billion of American goods, including agricultural products, crude imports, and vehicle products.

The precious metal was also held back by the Federal Reserve expressing concerns about the trade war, according to minutes from its last policy meeting in June.

“Most (Fed policymakers) noted that uncertainty and risks associated with trade policy had intensified and were concerned that such uncertainty and risks eventually could have negative effects,” according to the minutes.

Meanwhile the dollar was lower. Gold normally rises as the dollar falls, as the precious metal is denominated in the U.S. currency and is sensitive to moves in the dollar.

The , which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, inched down 0.14% to 94.00.

Bullion becomes more expensive for holders of other currencies when the dollar rises and cheaper when it falls.

Elsewhere on the Comex, were down 0.17% to $16.070 a troy ounce. Among other precious metals, rose 0.25% to $843.50 while decreased 0.34% to $939.50 an ounce. futures lost 0.07% to $2.824 a pound.

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