Investing.com - Gold prices slipped, then recovered, on Thursday as a weak volley of U.S. economic data offset optimism over trade talks between China and the U.S.
Early risk-on sentiment faded after weak U.S. retail sales and inflation data raised the possibility of the Federal Reserve holding rates steady for all of 2019.
At 9:30 AM ET (14:30 GMT), gold futures for April delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell $1.45, or 0.11%, to $1,313.65 a troy ounce. For the third time in a week, the yellow metal quickly found buyers under the $1,310 level.
Risk appetite had been on the rise earlier, to the detriment of gold, supported by growing hopes of a breakthrough in the trade dispute between U.S. and China. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer find themselves in Beijing for two days of high-level negotiations.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the talks with China were “going along very well” as they try to resolve the tariff dispute ahead of a March 1 deadline, when U.S. tariffs on $200 billion worth of imports from China are scheduled to rise to 25% from 10%.
Bloomberg later reported that Trump is considering a 60-day extension to that deadline if he sees enough progress being made, giving the impression that trade tensions are cooling.
In other metals trading, silver futures lost 0.96% at $15.502 a troy ounce by 8:13 AM ET (13:13 GMT).
Palladium futures gained 0.51% to $1,379.65 an ounce after a report from Johnson Mathey forecast a global deficit for this year, while sister metal platinum traded down 1.01% at $783.80. Palladium demand will be supported by tighter emissions standards being enforced on the auto industry, it said.
In base metals, copper advanced 0.72% to $2.793 a pound.
-- Reuters contributed to this report.