Gold slips 1% as equities gain, investors assess banking risks

Gold prices slipped on Monday as a rebound in equities dented the metal's safe-haven appeal, while investors evaluated steps by authorities to calm fears of a crisis in the global banking system.

Spot gold was down 1% at $1,958.33 per ounce, as of 0947 GMT. US gold futures fell 1.1% to $1,961.30.

A buyer for Silicon Valley Bank's deposits and loans helped shares in European lenders mount a partial recovery, sending gold further below the $2,000 mark breached last week.

"After kissing the psychological $2000 level last week, bears exploited this resistance to attack. Appetite for the precious metal has also been dampened by a stabilizing dollar and mixed signals on monetary policy from the Fed," said Lukman Otunuga, senior research analyst at FXTM.

Recent stress in the banking sector brings the US closer to recession, Minneapolis Fed president Neel Kashkari said on Sunday. However, Fed officials said there was no indication that financial stress was worsening.

"Gold is set to shine through the market chaos with expectations around the Fed cutting rates in 2023, fueling upside gains," Otunuga said, adding that a potent fundamental spark is needed to conquer the $2,000 psychological level and the March 2022 peak to reach its record high.

Last week, the US Federal Reserve indicated it was on the verge of pausing further increases, boosting non-yielding gold's appeal.

The dollar index held steady and was off last week's over one-month low. A stronger greenback tends to make bullion a less attractive bet.

The minor decline on Monday can be attributed to the recovery seen in stocks, but the overall trend for gold remains positive, said Carlo Alberto De Casa, external analyst at Kinesis Money in a note.

Spot silver shed 1.3% to $22.92 per ounce, platinum lost 1.4% to $963.13 and palladium dipped 1.3% to $1,397.28.