Gold prices fell on Monday, to head for the second straight daily loss, and fell below the $1,700 barrier as the US dollar rallied against its peers due to rising T-bond yields.

Gold prices fell 1.3% to the lowest since March 9 at $1,690.84 an ounce, after opening at $1,712.51, and hit a high of $1,714.39

Gold closed lower by 1.1% yesterday, as the US dollar rose against its major counterparts.

The dollar index rose more than 0.3% today, and hit a 4-month high of 93.20 points, which weighs down on the prices of dollar-denominated commodities.

The US 10-year Treasury bond yields rose 3.5% today, extending gains for the fourth straight day, and hit 14-month peak at 1.774%, which pushed investors to consolidate their long positions in the US dollar.

This came based on expectations that the US President Joe Biden's plan to revitalize America's infrastructure could boost economic growth in the country.

Gold prices lost 6% last month, and posted the second monthly loss, and the largest monthly loss since November 2016, as investors focused on the US Treasury bonds.

Gold stocks at the SPDR ETF rose 0.88 metric tonnes yesterday, in the first daily increase since March 19, with a total of 1,037.50 metric tonnes.

Oil prices lost 2% on Tuesday, and the US crude pulled back from its 2-week high hit earlier, to head for the first daily loss in three days as the US dollar rallied against its peers due to rising T-bond yields, amid concerns over weak demand in Europe.

US crude fell 2.0% to $60.70, after opening at $61.81, and hit a day high at $62.25, and Brent crude fell 1.8% to $64.14, after opening at $65.34, and hit a day high at $65.39.

US crude gained 1.7% yesterday, in the second daily gain, and Brent crude futures rose 1.25%, and hit a 2-week high of $65.46.

Yesterday's gains came thanks to expectations of OPEC Plus to extend the current production cuts for an extra month to May, which offset the impact of resolving the Suez Canal crisis.

The dollar index rose more than 0.3% today, and hit a 4-month high of 93.17 points, which weighs down on the prices of dollar denominated commodities.

The US 10-year Treasury bond yields rose 3.5% today, extending gains for the fourth straight day, and hit 14-month peak at 1.774%, which pushed investors away from riskier assets.

The rising numbers of Covid-19 infections in Europe, which foreshadows a third wave of the pandemic, alerted most European governments, which may resort to tightening the lockdown restrictions, as French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said that options on the table to protect French people.

Euro fell in European trade against dollar for another session, marking 4-1/5 month lows as investors shun risks while US treasury yields rally. 

EUR/USD fell 0.3% to 1.1733, the lowest since November 5, after closing down 0.25% yesterday, the fourth loss in five days. 

The dollar index added 0.3% on Tuesday on track for the second profit in a row, marking 4-1/5 month highs at 93.17. 

US 10-year treasury yields rose 3.5% today on track for the fourth profit in a row, marking 14-month highs at 1.774. 

In Europe, strict coronavirus limitations in Germany and France hurt short-term growth expectations for the economy, in turn nudging the euro down. 

The British pound fell against the US dollar on Monday, as investors avoided risk assets.

Countries around the world are intensifying their efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic with largescale vaccination campaigns.

Several European countries re-imposed lockdown restrictions due to rising Covid-19 infections.

The British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is gradually working to ease the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions, in tandem with progress in administering vaccines, led by the Oxford-AstraZeneca and the Pfizer-BioNTtech vaccines.

Boris Johnson decided to take the first shot of the controversial Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to confirm its safety.

As of 19:31 GMT, GBP/USD fell 0.2% to 1.3761, after hitting a high of 1.3846 and a low of 1.3756.