Gold falls amid stronger dollar, eurozone concerns

CHICAGO, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell Tuesday, as a stronger dollar and renewed concerns for the eurozone pressured trading.

The most active gold contract for August delivery lost 9.3 dollars, or 0.59 percent, to settle at 1,579.8 dollars per ounce.

Gold erased nearly all of the previous session's gains, as a bearish outside market atmosphere overtook trading.

While as recently as late June investors had taken a more optimistic view of the eurozone crisis, now negativity seems to have returned to the forefront, as traders questioned Tuesday the stability of Italy and cooperation of Germany.

The eurozone worries led the dollar to rise to a two-year high against the euro, a development which lent extra pressure to gold.

A stronger greenback is a negative force for commodities, as it makes them more expensive to holders of other currencies.

U.S. equities and crude oil also suffered on the session, heaping even more pressure onto the gold market.

Gold trading Tuesday was additionally fairly light, as investors wait with uncertainty for Wednesday's release from the U. S. Federal Reserve Bank. The Fed release will detail the minutes of the central bank's last policy meeting, which could provide a clearer look as to whether future quantitative easing measures are on the table.

Silver for September delivery lost 56.2 cents, or 2.05 percent, to close at 26.882 dollars per ounce.