CHICAGO, June 30 (Xinhua) -- Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell Friday because of a rise in global bond yields, which diminished appetite for precious metals.
The most active gold contract for August delivery fell 3.5 U.S. dollars, or 0.28 percent, to settle at 1,242.30 dollars per ounce.
The metal fell about 1.1 percent for the week and lost 2.6 percent for the month. For the first six months of the year, however, it rose 7.9 percent, according to FactSet data tracking the most-active contracts.
A week of selling in government bonds, fueled by concerns that global central bankers may be inclined to end a protracted period of accommodative policies, including purchasing troves of sovereign paper, has rattled markets. The Fed ended its bond-purchase program in 2014 and has lifted benchmark interest rates four times since 2015.
Higher yields tend to increase the opportunity cost of purchasing commodities that don't offer a yield to assets, like bonds, which are seeing yields pick up.
As for other precious metals, silver for September delivery dropped 2.7 cents, or 0.16 percent, to close at 16.627 dollars per ounce. Platinum for October delivery went up 3.3 dollars, or 0.36 percent, to settle at 926.4 dollars per ounce. Enditem
