Gold prices edge higher on softer dollar, trade worries

Gold prices crept higher early on Tuesday, after falling about 1 percent to a six-and-a-half-month low in the previous session, as a softer dollar and mounting global trade tensions supported the safe-haven metal.FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was up 0.1 percent at $1,242.23 an ounce as of 0044 GMT. It fell about 1 percent to $1,239.20, its lowest since Dec. 12, on Monday.

* U.S. gold futures were 0.1 percent higher at $1,243.10 an ounce.

* The dollar index <.dxy>, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was 0.2 percent lower at 94.864, after gaining about 0.4 percent the previous day. [USD/]

* U.S. President Donald Trump warned the World Trade Organization on Monday that "we`ll be doing something" if the United States is not treated properly, just hours after the European Union said that U.S. automotive tariffs would hurt its own vehicle industry and prompt retaliation.

* The White House said on Monday that Canada`s decision to enact tariffs on C$16.6 billion ($12.63 billion) worth of American goods in retaliation for U.S. tariffs on imports of Canadian steel and aluminium would not help its economy.

* The U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Monday denounced President Trump`s handling of global trade disputes, issuing a report that argued tariffs imposed by Washington and retaliation by its partners would boomerang badly on the American economy.

* Investors have sharply increased their use of hedging strategies, signalling concerns that the intensifying trade battle between the United States and China might hit economies from Germany to South Korea.

* U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will leave for North Korea on Thursday seeking agreement on a plan for the country`s denuclearization, despite mounting doubts about Pyongyang`s willingness to abandon a weapons program that threatens the United States and its allies.

* U.S. manufacturing activity surged in June, but a strong economy and import tariffs were causing bottlenecks in the supply chain, which could potentially weigh on production in the months ahead.

* The U.S. economy is growing at a 4.1 percent annualised rate in the second quarter in the wake of the latest data on construction spending and manufacturing activity, the Atlanta Federal Reserve`s GDPNow forecast model showed on Monday.

* The Perth Mint`s sales of gold products in June increased about 14 percent from May sales, while silver sales fell about 60 percent from the prior month, the mint said on Monday.

* Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust , the world`s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 1.19 percent to 809.31 tonnes on Monday. [GOL/ETF]DATA AHEAD (GMT)0900 Euro zone Producer prices May

0900 Euro zone Retail sales May

1345 U.S. ISM-New York index June

1400 U.S. Factory orders May

(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)