Precious metals turn pale

A surging U.S. dollar index puts pressure on prices

Bullion metals ended lower at Comex on Monday, 25 August 2014. Gold got back to its losing ways after last week's positive finish, slipping on Monday as traders and central bankers continue to assess the threat of rising interest rates and as a buildup of Russian forces near Ukraine stoke global jitters. A surging U.S. dollar index has been a bearish weight on gold the past couple weeks.

Gold for December delivery fell $1.30 to settle at $1,278.90 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

September silver was off 3 cents to end at $19.36 an ounce.

Gold prices ended the U.S. day session slightly lower in quieter trading on Monday.The U.S. dollar index hit an 11-month high and the Euro currency sunk to an 11-month low on Monday, following remarks from European Central Bank president Mario Draghi, who last Friday in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, sounded very dovish commentary on ECB monetary policy. Draghi's comments suggest the ECB will initiate further monetary stimulus measures, including quantitative easing, in the coming months, or sooner. Fed Chair Janet Yellen also spoke in Jackson Hole Friday, but the market place deemed her remarks more balanced, regarding U.S. monetary policy.

In other news on Monday, the August German Ifo consumer confidence survey came in at a reading of 106.3 versus expectations for a reading of 107.0. The downbeat report is yet another sign the European Union economy has slipped back into recession and is another sign of more monetary policy stimulus coming from the ECB soon.

There are still geopolitical matters that have the attention of the market place. U.S. military action in Iraq and the rise of the ISIS fighters in the region is a big worry for Western powers. Russia-Ukraine tensions and the fighting on the Gaza strip are also in the background.

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