Investing.com -- Gold prices were flat on Tuesday as the re-emergence of Brexit risk vied with signs of robust U.S. economic health for the market’s attention.
Prices hit their highest in nearly a week early in the day after U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson let it be known he will change the law to ensure that the transitional phase of relations between the U.K. and EU ends as scheduled on Dec. 31. That revives the risk of a disruptive no-deal Brexit scenario, given that EU negotiators say that isn’t enough time to negotiate a comprehensive trade agreement.
However, they reversed after another round of positive-looking U.S. data, which showed housing starts at close to their highest in 10 years and a slightly stronger-than-expected rise in industrial production, coupled with a strong – if more backward-looking - JOLTS report on job openings in October.
As a result, gold futures for delivery on the Comex exchange were left broadly where they started the day and by 11:45 AM ET (1645 GMT) were up less than 0.1% at $1,481.35 a troy ounce. Spot gold was also up 0.1% at $1,477.21.
Silver futures were down 0.1% at $17.09 an ounce, while platinum futures were down 0.7% at $925.65.
There was little apparent impact either way from the sharp slide in Bitcoin, which has often been touted as an alternative asset similar to gold (albeit without the transparency of market pricing and the reliable market infrastructure).
Elsewhere, copper futures again did the inverse of gold, also returning to the day’s starting point of $2.81 a pound, albeit by the opposite route.