Gold for February delivery GCG5, -0.15% fell $3.80, or 0.3%, to settle at $1,225.60 an ounce. March silver SIH5, -0.04% dropped 8 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $17.11 an ounce.
Meanwhile, the U.S. stock market recovered energetically in the wake of Wednesday’s profit-taking following two days of gains. Typically, investors run for the perceived safety of gold when equities worldwide come under that much pressure.
On the U.S. economic front Thursday, the Commerce Department released a stronger-than-expected reading on U.S. retail sales that appeared to weigh on investors’ interest in the yellow metal. Weekly jobless claims came in at 294,000, while economists polled by MarketWatch expected 296,000.
David Gurwitz of Charles Nenner Research told Kitco News that he expects gold to return to its highs, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to start that journey any time soon.
“Long-term cycles have bottomed,” he said. “[But] just because the cycles bottom, it doesn’t mean it is ready to go right away. They can stay bottomed for a while.”
In other metals trading, January platinum PLF5, -0.76% fell 40 cents to $1,242.20 an ounce, while March palladium PAH5, -0.24% lost $1.80 to $819.60 an ounce.
High-grade copper for March delivery HGH5, +0.41% tacked on 3 cents, or 1%, to $2.92 a pound.
