Gold demand falls as US growth improves

Gold prices have dipped by 3.9 per cent since the end of December.


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By :  ,  Financial Analyst

Demand for gold has fallen markedly due to signs that growth in the US could be improving.

A third month of retail sales upwards movement has resulted in gold prices falling down 3.9 per cent since December 31st, which represents the poorest start to a year since 2001, Bloomberg reports.

Consumer confidence escalated at a greater rate in February than many analysts anticipated, which has had a knock-on effect for the precious commodity, with bets on higher gold prices tumbling to the lowest level seen since December 2008.

James Paulsen, chief investment strategist at Wells Capital Management, said: "As confidence is building in an economic recovery that's sustainable globally, you could lose a bid to gold."

Last week saw the Standard & Poor's GSCI Spot Index of 24 commodities falling by 0.3 per cent – mainly due to silver and cocoa declines, while a 0.2 per cent decline was recorded by the MSCI All Country World Index of equities.

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