Gold prices inched lower on Thursday, after dropping over 1% in the previous session, pressured by a firmer dollar and optimism over a COVID-19 vaccine related developments bolstering risk appetite.
Spot gold fell 0.1% to $1,863.70 per ounce by 0048 GMT.
U.S. gold futures were flat at $1,862.20.
The dollar index held steady near a one-week high hit Wednesday, while Asian stocks were set to continue their vaccine-driven gains.
President Donald Trump’s campaign on Wednesday took another step in its long-shot legal strategy to upend his election loss with a Michigan lawsuit, while Georgia announced a recount and President-elect Joe Biden worked on laying the foundation of his administration.
The European Central Bank will focus on more emergency bond purchases and cheap loans for banks when it puts together its new stimulus package next month to help the pandemic-hit euro zone economy, ECB President Christine Lagarde said on Wednesday.
France reported 35,879 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the total to 1.86 million, overtaking Russia and making France the worst affected country in the European region.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust , the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, fell 0.72% to 1,240.74 tonnes on Wednesday.
Silver fell 0.4% to $24.16 per ounce. Platinum was flat at $865, while palladium rose 0.3% to $2,321.88.