Gold prices remain stuck

OIL  

Oil prices edged lower on Friday following three days of gains that took the prices to fresh mid-March highs around $68.40. The futures were pressured by a rising dollar and a weaker risk demand ahead of the weekend. Earlier in the week, the American Petroleum Institute announced its estimate of a rise of 4.3 million barrels in crude oil inventories. Meanwhile, the EIA said U.S. crude inventories edged up by just 100,000 barrels for the week ended April 23 while total oil production edged down by 100,000 barrels to 10.9 million barrels per day. At that, the overall picture remains upbeat, and the $70 barrier remains in focus. For the time being, concerns of wider lockdowns in India and Brazil offset a positive outlook on summer fuel demand.

GOLD 

Gold prices remain stuck in a familiar trading range, trending lower these days. The precious metal failed to challenge the 100-DMA last week and has been oscillating around $1,780 since Monday. The key target for bulls arrives at $1,800 where the mentioned moving average lies. Following failed bullish attempts, the bullion slipped to the $1,755 area before trimming losses. Earlier, the yellow metal derived support from US dollar weakness. The greenback added to the post-FOMC losses and dropped to over two-month lows. There are some obstacles for bulls from the technical point of view as well. In particular, gold repeated failures near the $1,800 mark, suggesting the metal would need an extra catalyst to make a decisive break above this barrier.