news of gold

Gold retreated for a fifth day and wheat fell, while U.S equity-index futures advanced after the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index capped its best week since July.Russia’s ruble weakened after deadly clashes in Ukraine’s east.

Gold retreated 0.6 percent as of 8:06 a.m. in London, while wheat fell 1.5 percent. The ruble slipped 0.3 percent to the euro and 0.2 percent against the greenback.Japan’s yen weakened against 15 of 16 major peers as exports increased just 1.8 percent in March when economists hadprojected a 6.5 percent jump. Futures on the S&P 500 advanced 0.2 percent while the yield on U.S. 10-year notes dropped as much as three basis points to 2.7 percent.

U.S. trading venues reopen today after shares rebounded last week from a selloff in technology stocks and Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen reiterated the bank’s commitment to achieving its goals for employment and inflation. Ukraine warned that Russia may use a deadly clash at a roadblock in the country’s east as a pretext for invasion. Japan’s imports surged 18 percent in March on an unadjusted basis from a year earlier, leading to a trade deficit of 1.45 trillion yen ($14.1 billion).

“It is very difficult for gold to sustain the panic that makes it a good safe-haven trade,” said Frances Hudson, a strategist at Standard Life in Edinburgh, which oversees $294 billion of assets. “I see demand for gold remaining non-enthusiastic. Things are looking better in the U.S. and Europe. It’s not that both these economies are racing ahead, but they are gradually improving.”