NEW YORK – Gold prices fell Friday from 4-1/2 month high as investors sold the metal for profits, ending a rally fueled by expectations the Federal Reserve will stimulate the economy via monetary easing measures in the near future. Upbeat durable goods orders helped fuel profit taking. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery were down 0.02 percent and trading at $1,670.25 a troy ounce, up from a session low of $1,662.95 and down from a high of $1,672.75 a troy ounce early during the session. Gold futures were likely to test support at $1,662.95 a troy ounce, the earlier low, and resistance at $1,675.15, the high from Aug. 23. Spot gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,667.39 an ounce at 16:19 Souh Africa time, while US gold futures for December delivery were down $2.70 an ounce at $1,670.10. Gold prices rallied in recent sessions on hopes the Federal Reserve will stimulate the US economy. The Fed released the minutes of its July 31 monetary policy meeting earlier this week in which voting members voiced support for monetary accommodation if the economy doesn't pick up the pace of its recovery. Stimulus measures such as quantitative easing, under which the Fed buys bonds from banks to inject liquidity into the financial system and lower interest rates, weaken the dollar and send gold rising as a side effect. However, since that meeting, surprisingly sound economic indicators have hit the wire, prompting investors to view that the Fed may hold off after all, including firmer retail sales, consumer sentiment and industrial production figures. More solid data broke on Friday, which sent gold falling. The Census Bureau reported earlier that durable goods orders rose to 4.2 percent in July from 1.6 percent in June, whose figure was revised up from 1.3 percent. Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for September delivery was up 0.34 percent and trading at $30.560 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery was down 0.29 percent and trading at $3.482 a pound. Platinum was also set for a second strong week of gains, up 5 percent and nearly 9 percent this month, after an outbreak of violence at a platinum mine in South Africa, source of around 80 percent of annual supply of the metal, saw 44 people dead. Other precious metals retreated along with gold, with platinum down 0.1 percent at $1,536.20 an ounce, off Thursday's near four-month high of $1,558.49 an ounce. World number one platinum producer Anglo American Platinum said Friday 100 workers had refused to go underground at its Thembelani mine in South Africa, a sign that simmering discontent in the sector has not been contained. The company said later that its miners had returned to work. Silver was up 0.4 percent at $30.62 an ounce, while spot palladium slid 1 percent to $643.47 an ounce. Impending rise in risk appetite goes a long way in offsetting weak fundamentals. – Agencies
