2018.12.1114:40:00UTC+00Gold Settles Lower Again As Dollar Edges Up

Gold futures settled lower on Tuesday, failing to hold early gains, as the dollar recovered from earlier weakness for a second successive day.

The prospects of a rate hike next week pulled the dollar out of the red. However, it is widely expected that the Fed will pause monetary tightening sometime soon in the coming year.

The dollar index wiped off earlier losses and moved up by about 0.2%.

Gold futures for February ended down $2.20, or 0.2%, at $1,247.20 an ounce.

On Monday, gold futures ended down $3.20, or 0.3%, at $1,249.40 an ounce.

Silver futures for March settled at $14.628 an ounce, up $0.023 from Monday's close.

Copper futures for March ended up $0.047, at $2.767 per pound.

On the Brexit front, the U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May, after calling off a crunch House of Commons vote, is now set to meet European leaders and European Union officials in the hope of clinching a better Brexit deal.

With regard to U.S.-China trade disputes, the two countries have resumed trade talks. According to reports, China's Vice Premier Liu He met US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Tuesday, to discuss next steps to implement the agreement reached at the G20 summit.

China's Commerce Ministry said, "Both sides exchanged views on putting into effect the consensus reached by the two countries' leaders at their meeting, and pushing forward the timetable and roadmap for the next stage of economic and trade consultations work."

According to Bloomberg News, a proposal to reduce tariffs on cars made in the U.S. to 15% from the current 40% has been submitted to China's Cabinet.

Meanwhile, concerns about Italy's budget dispute with Brussels continue to linger as the government is yet to reach a consensus on the budget.

In U.S. economic news, a report from the Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand inched up by 0.1% in November after climbing by 0.6% in October. Economists had expected prices to be unchanged.

Excluding food and energy prices, core producer prices rose by 0.3% in November following a 0.5% increase in October. Core prices had been expected to edge up by 0.1%.