2020.11.1118:36:00UTC+00Gold Futures Settle Lower As Dollar Advances

Gold futures drifted lower on Wednesday as the dollar gained in strength, resulting dimming the yellow metal's safe-haven appeal.

Optimism about potential coronavirus vaccine helped ease concerns about economic recovery and triggered another round of buying in riskier assets such as equities.

Still, the continued surge in new coronavirus cases in several states across the U.S. and in many European countries limited gold's slide.

The dollar index, which was a bit subdued during the Asian session, climbed higher as the day progressed and hit a high of 93.21 before paring some gains. It was last seen hovering around 93.05, up 0.32% from previous close.

Gold futures for December ended down $14.80 or about 0.8% at $1,861.60 an ounce.

Silver futures for December closed lower by $0.195 at $24.267 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $3.1340 per pound, down $0.0215 from previous close.

New coronavirus cases raced across the U.S. and Europe, raising concerns that health systems will be overwhelmed with the advent of autumn and winter in the Northern Hemisphere.

The United States added 201,961 Covid-19 cases in the 24-hour period on Tuesday, far exceeding its previous daily record of new Covid-19 cases, according to the tally compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

A lot of U.S. states have put up tight restrictions to help contain the spread of the virus amid a surge in hospitalizations.

Experts are cautioning that there are many supply chain hurdles with manufacturing, warehousing, distributing, and administering the Covid-19 vaccines.

U.S. Federal Reserve policymakers said on Tuesday that soaring coronavirus cases and the lack of fiscal support could hinder the nation's economic recovery.