The US consumer confidence index fell to 117.2 in May from the revised 117.5 in April, the Conference Board said on Tuesday. This is below the forecast of economists polled by Dow Jones and WSJ, who expected the index to be 119.5 in May.
US new home sales in April fell nearly 6% from February to a seasonally adjusted 863,000 units per year. This is evidenced by a report released on Tuesday by the US Department of Commerce. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch expected sales of 959,000 homes per year.
However, according to data released on Tuesday by S & P /CoreLogic /Case-Shiller, the national house price index, which measures average home prices in major US metropolitan areas, rose 13.2% in March compared to the same period last year. of the year. The March figure was the highest since December 2005.
Against this background, COMEX June gold futures rose in price by $ 13.5, or 0.7%, to $ 1,898 per ounce. Silver futures for July are up 15 cents, or 0.5%, to $ 28.06 an ounce.
"External sources provide good support for gold and silver prices ... the dollar continues to weaken and Treasury yields are falling," James Hatsiannis of Ploutus Capital Advisors told MarketWatch.
The ICE dollar index was down 0.2% to 89.665. A weaker dollar could make assets denominated in US currencies more attractive to holders of other currencies. The yield on 10-year US Treasuries is roughly 1.568%, nearing lows since early May. Falling yields on these securities could strengthen the position of precious metals and other non-coupon-bearing assets as the opportunity cost of owning such metals and other assets decreases.
“The economy has started to work almost at full strength, and we believe that in such conditions, the former classic demand for gold and silver will return,” added Khaciannis.
July copper futures fell less than 0.1% to $ 4.51 a pound, while July platinum rose 1.6% to $ 1,196.9 an ounce. June palladium futures added 1.7% to $ 2,777.2 an ounce. September palladium futures, also among the most actively traded contracts, rose 1.7% to $ 2,785.9 an ounce.
