18.05.202019:32:00UTC+00Gold Futures Snap 4-day Winning Streak, End Notably Lower

Gold prices edged lower on Monday, snapping a four-day winning streak, as riskier assets such as equities gained in strength after biotech firm Moderna Inc. came out with positive news about its experimental mRNA coronavirus vaccine.

Comments from the Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell that the U.S. economy will take about one and a half year to recover, but the downturn will not be severe as the Great Depression contributed as well to the rally in stock markets.

Gold futures for June ended down $21.90, or about 1.3%, at $1,734.40 an ounce.

On Friday, gold futures for June ended up $15.40, or 0.9%, at $1,756.30 an ounce.

Silver futures for July moved up $0.398 to $17.468 an ounce, while Copper futures for July ended up $0.0735 at $2.4040 per pound.

"It's going to be a very sharp downturn," Powell said on CBS' "Face the Nation" that aired on Sunday. He said the U.S. would have a slow recovery from what he called "biggest shock" that the economy's had in living memory.

However, he added, "It should be a much shorter downturn than you would associate with the 1930s."

Moderna Inc said its experimental coronavirus vaccine mRNA had produced antibodies in all 45 trial participants.