Investing.com - Gold futures traded at a four-week low on Thursday, remaining sharply lower despite the release of a flurry of mostly disappointing U.S. economic data.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for June delivery traded at USD1,378.05 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours, down 1.3% on the day.
Comex gold prices fell by as much as 2% earlier in the session to hit a daily low of USD1,368.05 a troy ounce, the weakest level since April 19.
Gold prices were likely to find support at USD1,347.50 a troy ounce, the low from April 18 and resistance at USD1,420.30, the high from April 19.
The Department of Labor said earlier that the number of people who filed for unemployment assistance in the U.S. rose by 32,000 to a seasonally adjusted 360,000 last week, compared to expectations for an increase of 2,000 to 330,000.
Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said the number of building permits issued in the U.S. rose 14.3% to a seasonally adjusted 1.017 million in April, blowing past expectations for a 3.8% increase to 0.973 million units.
However, U.S. housing starts plunged by 16.5% last month to a seasonally adjusted 0.853 million, compared to expectations for a decline of 6.4% to 0.973 million.
A separate report showed that consumer price inflation in the U.S. fell 0.4% in April, compared to expectations for a 0.2% decline and lower for the second consecutive month.
A weak technical outlook continued to weigh on the precious metal.
Gold futures tumbled 2% on Wednesday as a bout of technical selling kicked in after prices broke below key support levels, triggering fresh sell orders amid bearish chart signals.
Comex gold prices suffered a massive sell-off in April, plunging to a 27-month low of USD1,322.25 an ounce on April 16. Prices rebounded to as high as USD1,487.15 a troy ounce on May 3.
However, the precious metal failed to revisit the key psychological USD1,500-level on numerous attempts, indicating chart signals remain bearish.
Meanwhile, sentiment on the precious metal was further dampened after data showed that hedge fund billionaire George Soros cut his holdings of gold-backed exchange-traded products in the first quarter.
Funds run by Blackrock and Northern Trust also showed reductions, underlining concerns that investment demand is fading as U.S. stock markers rally to all-time highs.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for July delivery fell 0.75% to trade at USD22.49 a troy ounce, while copper for July delivery dipped 0.3% to trade at USD3.254 a pound.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.