Gold witnessed some selling during the mid-European session and was last seen hovering near the lower boundary of its weekly trading range, just above the $1720 region. The precious metal has been struggling to gain any meaningful traction and has been oscillating in a narrow trading band since the beginning of this year. Investors remain worried that the third wave of COVID-19 infections and pandemic-related restrictions could derail the global economic recovery. This, in turn, was seen as a key factor that extended some support to the safe-haven XAU/USD.
That said, a generally positive tone around the equity markets failed to impress bullish traders or provide any impetus to the precious metal. Apart from this, a goodish pickup in the US Treasury bond yields further collaborated to cap gains for the non-yielding yellow metal. This, along with the underlying US dollar bullish sentiment, supports prospects for some meaningful downside.