Gold slides over 1% as oil surges on Strait of Hormuz closure fears
GLD•Gold falls as oil jumps on Gulf tensions
July 13 (Reuters) - Gold prices slid more than 1% on Monday as fears of a closure of the Strait of Hormuz drove oil prices sharply higher, reviving expectations of elevated interest rates to combat inflationary pressures from escalating hostilities in the Middle East.
Spot gold XAU= dropped 1.5% to $4,060.36 per ounce by 0541 GMT. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for August delivery were down 1.1% at $4,068.30.
Speculative positioning and other precious metals
COMEX gold speculators trimmed their net long positions by 1,964 contracts to 114,854 in the week to July 7, data released on Friday showed, following three consecutive weeks of increases.
Elsewhere, spot silver XAG= declined 2.6% to $58.29 per ounce, platinum XPT= shed 1.6% to $1,601.92, and palladium XPD= fell 2% to $1,251.42.
