Investing.com - Gold prices continued to drop on Tuesday, weighed by the U.S. dollar's ongoing strength and diminished demand for safe-haven assets.
Comex gold futures were down 1.07% at $1,341.7 a troy ounce by 02:00 a.m. ET (06:00 GMT), the lowest since February 14.
The greenback remained supported despite sustained concerns over the deficit in the U.S., which is projected to climb near $1 trillion in 2019 following the recent announcement of infrastructure spending and large corporate tax cuts.
The dollar had been pressured lower recently by expectations for a faster pace of monetary tightening outside the U.S., which would lessen the divergence between the Federal Reserve and other central banks.
Market participants were looking ahead to the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting, due on Wednesday, for potential indications on the pace of future rate hikes.
Gold is sensitive to moves in both U.S. rates and the dollar. A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for holders of foreign currency, while a rise in U.S. rates lifts the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as bullion.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.28% at 89.33.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver futures lost 1.27% to $16.50 a troy ounce.