Gold prices inch down as dollar firms

Gold prices edged down in early Asian trade on Monday as the dollar firmed, changing direction from Friday when the metal rose for the first time in five sessions.

Fundamentals

Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,250.95 an ounce as of 0116 GMT. It gained about 0.4 percent on Friday.

US gold futures were 0.1-percent lower at $1,252.70 an ounce.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, climbed 0.1 percent to 94.701. 

US consumer prices accelerated in the year to May, with a measure of underlying inflation hitting the Federal Reserve`s 2 percent target for the first time in six years.

White House national security adviser John Bolton said on Sunday he believed the bulk of North Korea`s weapons programmes could be dismantled within a year, although some experts say the complete process could take far longer.

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer offered his resignation to party colleagues late on Sunday, party officials said, escalating a row over migration with Chancellor Angela Merkel that threatens her fragile government.

Euro zone inflation rose to its highest rate in more than a year this month as surging energy prices pushed price growth above the European Central Bank`s target, even if only temporarily, data from Eurostat showed on Friday.

Gold demand improved this week in India as prices fell to their lowest level in nearly three months, while demand elsewhere in Asia remained tepid as investors waited for prices to fall further. 

Mining has resumed and power has been restored at the Porgera gold mine in Papua New Guinea`s remote highlands run by Barrick Gold Co, four months after an earthquake disrupted production, the mine`s operator said.

China`s central bank on Friday revised up the value of its end-May gold reserves to $77.323 billion, from $73.739 billion stated earlier this month.

The US Mint sold 19,500 ounces of American Eagle gold coins in June, down 18.8 percent from the previous month, according to the latest data.

Speculators cut their net long positions in COMEX gold and silver contracts in the week to June 26, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data showed on Friday. 

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Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world`s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, fell 0.18 percent to 819.04 tonnes on Friday.