Even the week-long national holiday from October 1-7 could not buoy gold's appeal.

Although China does not publish data, Bloomberg reports gold exports to Hong Kong jumped from 13.7 tonnes to 19.7t; net purchases fell to 87.8t from 96.6t in September.

Lower gold demand from China - the world's largest user of bullion - may further dampen gold's outlook next year as the Federal Reserve looks to raise interest rates next month.

Industrial metals seem to not be faring any better as the Chinese government looks to increasing its support to the domestic market by stopping excessive futures short-selling.

Zinc suppliers said they plan to reduce output to boost prices, prompting the country's largest copper and nickel suppliers to meet and discuss how best to respond to the decline in metals prices.