29.01.201802:31:00UTC+00Gold Slips as U.S. Dollar, Equities Firmed

Gold prices eased on Monday as the U.S. dollar gained some lost ground and extended gains in equities added pressure on the bullion.

The precious metal moved near a 17-month notched last week as the greenback reached a three-year low after U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin buoyed a weaker currency.

Spot gold fell 0.1 percent to $1,348.10 an ounce.

U.S. gold futures for February delivery dropped 0.4 percent to $1,346.50 an ounce.

Asian shares extended their bull run amid strong corporate earnings and solid global economic growth.

The precious metal had fallen below the $1,400-an-ounce level in Sept. 2013 and has not crossed above the level since.

Spot gold may drop to $1,335 per ounce, as a support at $1,347 may not hold, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

In other precious metals, silver remained unchanged at $17.39 per ounce. It rose about 2.3 percent last week, its biggest weekly gain for the year, so far.

Platinum was up 0.1 percent at $1,010.80 per ounce, after falling 0.3 percent last week in its first weekly decline in seven.

Palladium declined 0.3 percent to $1,088.47 per ounce. The metal marked its second weekly loss last week, dropping about 1.2 percent.