2019.10.0114:15:00UTC+00Gold Futures Rebound On Weak Economic Data, Settle Notably Higher

Gold prices moved higher on Tuesday on safe-haven appeal after data showed a significant contraction in U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of September and economic reports from several parts of Europe too continued to raise concerns about global growth.

The dollar's retreat from higher levels limited gold's gains. The dollar index, which rose to 99.67 in morning trades, eased subsequently to 99.07, and was last seen at 99.19, down 0.19% from previous close.

Gold futures for December, which dropped to $1,465.00 earlier in the session, ended up $16.10, or about 1.1%, at $1,489.00 an ounce, after rising to a high of $1,493.50 intraday.

On Monday, gold futures for December ended down $33.50, or 2.2%, at $1,472.90 an ounce, the lowest settlement in almost two months.

Silver futures for December ended up $0.304, at $17.302 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $2.5605 per pound, down $0.0180 from previous close.

A report from the Institute for Supply Management showed a continued contraction in U.S. manufacturing activity in the month of September.

The ISM said its purchasing managers index dropped to 47.8 in September from 49.1 in August. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 50.1.

With the unexpected decrease, the index fell to its lowest level since hitting 46.3 in June of 2009, the last month of the Great Recession.

Meanwhile, a report from the Commerce Department said construction spending in the U.S. crept up by much less than expected in the month of August, inching up by just 0.1% to an annual rate of $1.287 trillion, after coming in nearly unchanged at a revised July estimate of $1.286 trillion.

Economists had expected construction spending to climb by 0.4% compared to the 0.1% uptick originally reported for the previous month.