Gold futures ended Wednesday with a gain, but overall strength in the U.S. dollar was among the reasons why prices for the metal posted a loss for the month. “A debt deal is not necessarily bad news for gold,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA. “Congress appears to be in a position to pass a debt deal that will avoid a catastrophic default, which initially was hurting gold prices,” he said. The details behind the proposed piece of legislation, however, “includes significantly lower spending, which will be a major blow to the economic outlook and likely trigger a much harder hitting recession.” Gold for August delivery GCQ23 climbed $5, or nearly 0.3%, to settle at $1,982.10 an ounce on Comex, with most-active prices logging a monthly decline of 1.8%, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.