Gold off the lows after retail sales, jobless claims data

Investing.com - Gold prices came off the lowest levels of the session on Thursday, as traders continued to monitor the direction of the dollar while digesting the latest spate of U.S. economic data in their quest to gauge the metal’s appeal.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for August delivery shed $3.10, or 0.26%, to trade at $1,183.50 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours after hitting a session low of $1,175.00.

A day earlier, gold prices hit $1,191.80, the most since June 3, before ending at $1,186.60. Futures were likely to find support at $1,168.50, the low from June 8, and resistance at $1,195.60, the high from June 3.

The U.S. Commerce Department said that retail sales increased by 1.2% last month, beating expectations for a gain of 1.1%, while core retail sales, which exclude automobile sales, rose by 1.0%, compared to forecasts for a 0.7% increase.

A separate report showed that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits increased by 2,000 to 279,000 last week. Analysts had expected initial jobless claims to remain unchanged at 277,000 last week.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.45% at 95.00, after rising to 95.62 earlier in the session.

Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for July delivery slumped 4.6 cents, or 1.67%, to trade at $2.701 a pound after a flurry of Chinese economic data came in broadly in line with market expectations.

Official data released earlier showed that industrial production in China rose by an annualized rate of 6.1% in May, just above expectations for a 6.0% increase and following a gain of 5.9% in the preceding month.

A separate report showed that fixed asset investment fell short of forecasts, indicating that China needs to act to prevent a further slowdown in the economy.

China's economy grew at the slowest pace in six years in the first quarter, underling speculation policymakers will have to introduce further easing measures to jumpstart the economy amid lackluster growth.

Since November, the People's Bank of China has introduced a series of stimulus measures, including lowering interest rates three times and cutting the reserve requirement ratios of major banks twice, in order to spur economic activity and boost growth.

The Asian nation is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption.