There is no market-specific impetus for fresh long positions to be established at present. Sentiment has been weakened by weakness across commodities over the past few days and the dollar is holding up well.

Any price dip has been quite well supported by fund buying, and aggressive selling has been discouraged. The positive sentiment remains very strong and people are looking for further price gains.

With a lack of fresh catalysts to trigger a significant move in either direction, we expect gold to remain in its consolidation mood over the near term.

Prices are being driven up by hedge funds, which are buying platinum because its fundamentals are looking good. Platinum has been in deficit for the past six years, and it's expected it will be in deficit this year.

Impressive gains are seen in platinum and palladium, which are rising strongly above their recent ranges.

We will not rule out the possibility of further weakness and prices are likely to remain volatile in a broader range.