Gold prices touched a 19-month low early on Thursday, mainly due to the strong US dollar and concerns about the Turkey crisis.
Spot gold fell by 1.2 per cent to $1,159.96, its lowest since January 2017.
However, bullion prices managed to recover slightly with spot gold going back up to $1,172.48 an ounce after the US dollar eased from a 13-month peak on news that China will hold trade talks with Washington this month.
Stop-loss selling early in the session pushed prices sharply lower, and it has recovered since on short-covering and physical buying, Ronald Leung, chief dealer at Lee Cheong Gold Dealers in Hong Kong, told Reuters.
Gold has lost its appeal as a safe-haven over the past few months as investors have preferred to park assets in U.S. Treasuries and dollar amid the uncertainty caused by the China-U.S. trade dispute, the Reuters report added.
The situation in Turkey also continues to remain in focus, with the US confirming on Wednesday that it will not remove steel tariffs, even if Turkey frees a US pastor. However, the Turkish lira has recovered after Qatar pledged $15bn in investment to Turkey.
Looking ahead, spot gold may fall further into a range of $1,142-$1,154, Reuters technicals analyst said. –ME website