Gold prices dip as dollar gains against other currencies; Grains and energy prices are mixed

Gold prices dip as dollar gains strength

DENVER — Gold prices retreated Monday as the dollar gained against other currencies.

Other commodities were mixed. Crude oil inched up while natural gas fell on concerns about huge supplies and warmer weather in the offing.

The ICE Futures US dollar index, a closely watched gauge of the dollar against other currencies, was at 80.1 in the morning and rose as high as 80.5 during the day.

Commodities tend to move opposite to the dollar. A rising U.S. currency makes dollar-denominated commodity contracts less appealing to foreign investors.

Gold for April delivery fell 1 percent to settle at $1,124 an ounce after hovering in the $1,100-an-ounce range since Feb. 25.

“We’re getting a little bit of profit taking,” Lind-Waldock commodities analyst Rich Ilczyszyn said. “We’ve had quite a rise here in the last two to three weeks.”

Energy prices were mixed. Natural gas fell 6.6 cents to settle at $4.527 per 1,000 cubic feet on the New York Mercantile Exchange after some weather forecasts predicted warmer weather in the next several days, said Richard Feltes, MF Global commodity research director.

In other April contracts, benchmark crude for April delivery rose 37 cents to settle at $81.87 a barrel on the Nymex and heating oil rose 0.81 cent to settle at $2.1055 a gallon.

Silver for May delivery fell 11 cents to $17.272 an ounce while copper fell .007 cent to $3.4105 a pound.

In March contracts, platinum rose $21 to $1,600.10 while palladium fell $5.05 to settle at $470.35 an ounce.

Elsewhere, grains were mixed as traders await a government report due Wednesday that will update supply and demand for grains.

Wheat for May delivery gained 1.50 cents to settle at $4.95 a bushel; soybeans added 5.25 cents to $9.48 a bushel and corn fell 0.5 cent to $3.75 a bushel.