· Gold turned lower on Monday, pressured by profit-taking after extending gains above the $1,300 mark to a three-week high amid ongoing tensions over Iran and North Korea as well as recent weak U.S. economic data.
· Spot gold was down 0.6 percent at $1,296.51 an ounce by 2:35 p.m. EDT (1835 GMT). U.S. gold futures for December delivery settled down 0.1 percent at $1,303.
· Spot gold has been rebounding since touching a two-month low of $1,260.16 on Oct. 6, lifted by worries about North Korea and a weak dollar.
· Palladium fell after making another break above $1,000 an ounce to the highest levels since early 2001 on the back of strong Chinese auto sales.
· Geopolitical risks, including over Iran and North Korea, are likely to persist this week, Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst with OANDA, said in a note.
"This should all combine to ensure that gold maintains a safe-haven tone this week," Halley said.
· Palladium was down 1.6 percent at $972.10 an ounce after reaching its highest since February 2001 at $1,010.50.
· Some investors had been wary when the metal, mostly used for auto catalysts to clean pollution from exhaust fumes, broke above $1,000 on Sept. 6, due to concern about weak global auto sales.
· Those worries seem to have been swept aside after the world's biggest auto market China last week reported sales growth of 5.7 percent in September.
· Silver fell 0.7 percent to $17.23 an ounce after hitting $17.46, its highest since mid-September, while platinum eased 1.1 percent to $932.80 an ounce.
Reference: Reuters
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