Investing.com - Gold prices remained lower in subdued trade on Monday, as the U.S. dollar remained mildly supported although fresh U.S. political woes could potentially threaten the greenback's future gains.
Trading volumes were expected to remain thin with U.S. markets were closed on Monday for Presidents' Day.
Comex gold futures were down 0.47% at $1,349.8 a troy ounce by 08:15 a.m. ET (12:15 GMT), off Friday's three-and-a-half week peak of $1,364.4.
The greenback strengthened after data on Friday showed that U.S. homebuilding increased to more than a one-year high in January and that building permits soared to their highest level since 2007.
The upbeat report overshadowed fresh concerns over the deficit in the U.S., which is projected to climb near $1 trillion in 2019 following the recent announcement of infrastructure spending and large corporate tax cuts.
However, investors were likely to remain cautious with the dollar amid fresh U.S. political jitters after Special Counsel Robert Mueller charged 13 Russians and three Russian companies over the weekend for meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was up 0.08% at 89.10.
Gold is sensitive to moves in the dollar. A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for holders of foreign currency.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver futures were down 0.43% at $16.64 a troy ounce.