WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Extending the losses from yesterday's session, gold prices have slumped on Wednesday as traders watch the ongoing efforts to end the U.S.-Iran standoff with cautious optimism while the blockade on the Strait of Hormuz continues. The rising inflationary pressure weighed on gold and silver prices.
Front Month Comex Gold for June month delivery has tumbled by $57.80 (or 1.28%) to $4,444.50 per troy ounce.
Front Month Comex Silver for June month delivery has slumped by $1.586 (or 2.08%) to $74.755 per troy ounce.
The U.S.-Israel versus Iran war entered day number 89 today with the ceasefire announced in early April still holding.
Over the last weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that talks with Iran proceeded well.
Later, Trump confirmed that negotiations were continuing in an orderly and constructive manner but remarked that the U.S. will not rush into a deal.
While Trump does not want Iran to develop or procure a nuclear weapon, hardliners in the Iranian regime are refusing to yield to this demand.
Trump wants to move the enriched uranium stockpiles that Iran has in its possession to a different country and destroy them.
On Sunday, Trump asked several Arab nations to join together to sign the Abraham Accords while reaching a pact with Iran.
On Tuesday, U.S. forces conducted strikes on Iranian boats that allegedly attempted to lay mines across the Strait of Hormuz as well as on missile-launching sites near the port city of Bandar Abbas in Iran. Iran accused the U.S. of violating the ceasefire.
A negotiation team from Iran comprising high-profile politicians and high-level senior diplomats arrived in Qatar on Tuesday for a two-day visit and returned to Iran.
The delegation discussed delicate issues blocking an agreement with the U.S. among which the return of Iran's frozen assets remained the main focus.
Today, Trump held a Cabinet meeting at the White House to discuss the ongoing efforts for striking a peace deal with Iran.
Yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that a final deal may take a few more days since a lot of talking back and forth between the two nations is involved. Rubio also stressed that the Strait of Hormuz will reopen one way or other and called its prolonged closure 'unacceptable.'
Today, Iran's Mizan news agency claimed of possessing a proposed draft Memorandum of Understanding between the U.S. and Iran.
The report mentioned that if signed, the MoU will lift the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports, and on its part, Iran will ensure clear and safe passage for commercial shipping via the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels.
The report added that Iran would manage the ship traffic across the strait jointly with Oman.
However, hours after its release, the White House called the report untrue and thrashed the MoU contents as a complete fabrication.
Further, in a telephonic interview with PBS News, Trump stated that Iran would not get relief from the U.S. sanctions in exchange for giving up its highly enriched uranium.
Trump also told reporters at White House today that Iran wants to make a deal but the U.S. is not satisfied with their offers.
Elsewhere in the Middle East, Israel bombarded Lebanon with more than 120 air strikes on Tuesday.
On the economic front, the Mortgage Bankers Association of America revealed that the Purchase Index in the U.S. decreased to 169.70 in May 22 from 170.40 in the previous week.
Data released by the Automatic Data Processing Inc. today revealed that private employers added an average of 35,750 jobs per week in the four weeks to May 9 down from a revised 40,750 in the prior period.
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