Gold prices gain on lower U.S. bond yields, virus worries
July 19 (Reuters) - Gold prices edged higher on Monday as a fall in U.S. Treasury yields and concerns over a global economic recovery slowdown due to the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus lifted demand for the safe-haven metal.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,814.38 per ounce by 0057 GMT.
* U.S. gold futures edged up 0.1% at $1,816.40.
* Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields dropped to a near two-week low at 1.2640%, reducing the opportunity cost of holding non-interest bearing gold.
* Asian shares slipped again as investor risk appetite was soured by fears of rising inflation and a relentless surge in coronavirus cases.
* Gold is used as a safe investment during times of political and financial uncertainty. It is also seen as a hedge against inflation.
* Many countries, particularly in Asia, are struggling to curb the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus and have been forced into taking lockdown measures.
* More than 190.45 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 4,254,285 have died, according to a Reuters tally.
* On the physical side, gold in India was sold at a discount last week for the first time in nearly a month as a jump in local prices curbed purchases. Buyers in other major Asian hubs were also put off by higher prices.
* SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.6% to 1,028.55 tonnes on Friday, the lowest since May 14.
* Speculators raised their net long positions in COMEX gold in the week ended July 13, data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed.
* Silver rose 0.2% to $25.72 per ounce, palladium climbed 0.6% to $2,645.98, and platinum was steady at $1,103.15.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 1400 US NAHB Housing Market Index July
(Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)
