Gold plummets as US dollar holds ground

Gold prices slipped today, July 17, as the US dollar stabilized after China's economy grew at a less-than-expected pace in the second quarter of this year.

China's GDP data came in cooler than expected, adding to concerns about the weakness of the country's economic recovery after the lifting of COVID-related restrictions.

This is after metal prices recorded strong gains over the past two weeks, with the US dollar falling to its lowest level in 15 months following the release of US inflation data.

Bullion for August delivery shed 0.41%, or $8, to $1,956.40 an ounce at 11:05 am Makkah time, with spot prices also down $1.23 to $1,953.98 per ounce.

Similarly, silver futures for September delivery plunged by 0.79% to $25 an ounce, with platinum spot prices also falling 0.61% to $970.30 per ounce.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which measures the performance of the US currency against a basket of six major currencies, kept flat at 99.96 points.