WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Despite a stronger dollar and higher bond yields, gold futures settled higher on Tuesday, after posting losses in the previous two sessions.
Persisting U.S.-China trade tensions and tariff hike plans by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump pushed up the demand for the safe-haven yellow metal.
U.S. has placed Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. on a blacklist due to alleged links to the Chinese military.
The dollar index climbed to 108.56, gaining nearly 0.3%.
Gold futures for January closed up $18.30 or about 0.7% at $2,656.70 an ounce.
Silver futures for January closed higher by $0.105 or about 0.35% at $30.447 an ounce, while Copper futures for January climbed to $4.1585 per pound, gaining $0.315 or 0.76%.
Data from the Commerce Department showed the U.S. trade deficit increased to $78.2 billion in November from a revised $73.6 billion in October. Economists had expected the trade deficit to climb to $78.0 billion from the $73.8 billion originally reported for the previous month.
The wider trade deficit came as the value of imports shot up by 3.4% to $351.6 billion, while the value of exports jumped by 2.7% to $273.4 billion.
The Institute for Supply Management's report said the services PMI climbed to 54.1 in December from 52.1 in November. Economists had expected the index to rise to 53.3.
Job openings in the U.S. unexpectedly increased in the month of November, rising to 8.098 million in the month, according to a report released by the Labor Department. Economists had expected job opening to dip to 7.700 million from the 7.744 million originally reported for the previous month.
Market participants now await more U.S. economic data this week, including the December non-farm payrolls report on Friday, for additional clues on the Fed's rate trajectory.
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