Gold Ends Lower On Strong Data; Sheds 0.1% For Week

(RTTNews) - Gold futures ended lower on Friday, with investors opting for the riskier equity assets after some better than expected economic data from the U.S. as new home sales climbed more than expected, with little support from the greenback which trended higher.

Gold shed about 0.1 percent for the week.

A Commerce Department report on Friday showed new home sales in the U.S. rebounded strongly in April to come in above economist estimates, after having reported a steep drop in sales in the previous month.

Gold for June delivery, the most actively traded contract, dropped $3.30 or 0.3 percent to close at $1,291.70 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange on Friday.

Gold for June delivery scaled an intraday high of $1,295.70 and a low of $1,286.60 an ounce.

On Thursday, gold futures higher supported by India's decision to relax gold import norms and on geopolitical concerns.

Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, remained unchanged at 776.89 tons on Friday from its previous close.

The dollar index, which tracks the U.S. unit against six major currencies, traded at 80.39 on Friday, up from its previous close of 80.23 late Thursday in North American trade. The dollar scaled a high of 80.44 intraday and a low of 80.23.

The euro traded lower against the dollar at $1.3631 on Friday, as compared to its previous close of $1.3659 late Thursday in North America. The euro scaled a high of $1.3659 intraday and a low of $1.3616.

In economic news from the U.S., a report from the U.S. Commerce Department showed that new home sales jumped by a more than expected 6.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 433,000 in April, from the revised March rate of 407,000. Economists expected new home sales to climb to a rate of 420,000. The revised rate for March represents a substantial upward revision from the 384,000 originally reported, although it still represents a six-month low.

Confidence among German firms deteriorated more-than-expected to a five-month low in May, signaling growth may ease in the second quarter. Germany's economic growth rebounded in the first quarter as initially estimated, driven mostly by domestic demand, a report from Destatis showed Friday. The business confidence index fell to 110.4 in May from 111.2 in April, a monthly survey by Ifo Institute showed Friday. The score was forecast to drop to 110.9.