Editor's Note: The article was updated to reflect a drop in prices.
(Kitco News)-The gold market is unable to hold gains as the euro drops gains against the U.S. dollarfollowing optimistic comments from European Central Bank president MarioDraghi.
The ECB remains confident thatthe eurozone economy will continue to trend upwards through the rest of theyear despite a recent wave of lackluster growth, an environment of risinginflation.
The euro briefly pushed tosession highs against the U.S. dollar Thursday after Draghi described the sentiment among the governing committee regarding economic growth as “cautioustempered with unchanged confidence.”
As the euro has rallied, gold prices has heldfirmly in positive territory, as it remains near thebottom of its well-established trading range. However, the market was unable to hold its gains and it dropped into negative territory; June gold futures last traded at$1,321.50 an ounce, down 0.10% on the day.
“The latest economic indicatorssuggest some moderation in the pace of growth since the start of the year. Thismoderation may in part reflect a pullback from the high pace of growth observedat the end of last year, while temporary factors may also be at work,” Draghisaid in his opening statement. “Overall, however, growth is expected to remainsolid and broad-based. Our monetary policy measures, which have facilitated thedeleveraging process, should continue to underpin domestic demand.”
Overall, he said that the risks to continuedeconomic growth remain broadly balanced. Draghi also warned that a significantrisk to the region’s economy is the rising threat of protectionism.
By Kitco NewsFor Kitco News
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