US Scrap Gold prices drop further; Gold Futures hit 4-week low on strong Dollar

UNITED STATES September 10 2015 10:06 AM

NEW YORK (Scrap Register): United States gold scrap prices declined on Wednesday in line with gold futures prices at New York Mercantile Exchange as a rise in Asian and European equities and strength in the US dollar lured investors away from the precious metal.

The major gold scrap commodities on the Scrap Register Price Index traded down on Thursday. The 9ct hallmarked gold scrap prices down to $403.708 an ounce and 14ct hallmarked gold scrap prices declined to $629.784 an ounce. The 18ct hallmarked gold scrap and 22ct hallmarked gold scrap prices also down at $807.416 ounce and $986.124 an ounce respectively.

According to Scrap Register Price Index, the 9ct non-hallmarked gold scrap prices dropped to $381.858 an ounce and 14ct non-hallmarked gold scrap prices down to $595.698 an ounce on Wednesday. The 18ct non-hallmarked gold scrap and 22ct non-hallmarked gold scrap prices are also traded down to $763.716 an ounce and $932.751 an ounce respectively.

The most active December gold contract on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange last traded down by $19 to $1,102 an ounce on Wednesday. That was the lowest settlement price since August 7. Gold prices have fallen 10 out of the last 12 sessions. That doesn’t include Monday, which didn't see a Comex settlement price because of the Labor Day holiday.

Gold prices were also weighed amid ongoing uncertainty about whether the Federal Reserve will increase interest rates later this month when it meets on September 16-17. Last week's U.S. jobs report failed to provide much clarity on when the U.S. central bank will decide to raise short term interest rates.

The timing of a Fed rate hike has been a constant source of debate in the markets in recent months. Gold has failed to attract strong investor interest as a safe haven despite the recent weakness in stocks due to worries over the Chinese economy, showing that the metal is struggling to find direction outside U.S. monetary policy.

The cabinet on Wednesday cleared the launch of a sovereign gold bond as an alternative to buying the metal, a government source said, a move that seeks to trim demand for the metal that the country imports heavily.