Gold prices rose moderately, departing from the three-week low, due to the decline in European stock markets and the uncertainty associated with Greece. Experts point out that the focus of markets continues to be Greece and the related political uncertainty, as Greek Prime Tsipras continues to seek a review of the debt agreements. On Wednesday, the euro zone finance ministries will discuss the situation of Greece, and markets will be hard to expect the results of this meeting.

"Three months before the FOMC meeting gold acted as a safe haven because of concerns about Greece, but now the emphasis has shifted again to the United States, namely, the timing of the Fed raising interest rates - said Citi analyst David Wilson, referring to the meeting of FOMC, which took place last month. - it is expected that gold prices will continue to decline as the market is not very concerned about the influence of Greece to the rest of Europe at the moment. "

The course of today's trading also influenced the data for China, showing that trade surplus in January rose to $ 60.03 billion, compared with $ 49.61 billion a month earlier. Analysts had forecast a surplus of $ 49.0 billion. The record surplus in the balance of foreign trade in the last month was recorded on a background of a maximum of more than five years, the fall in imports. The volume of imports fell by 19.7% compared with January 2014 due to lower commodity prices and weak domestic demand. Oil imports decreased by 41.8%, iron ore - by 50.3%, coal - by 50.3%. China reduced imports from all regions, which are its major trading partners, including the European Union and the United States

As for the situation in the physical market, the margins in China rose to $ 05.04 per ounce from less than $ 4 on Friday, as the drop in prices last week attracted new buyers. Chinese consumers are buying gold on the eve of the New Year according to the lunar calendar, but just before the holiday demand falls, traders said. "As the Chinese New Year is already there (celebrated on February 19-20), purchase substantially completed, and you should not expect seasonal support from the Chinese market," - said an analyst at Phillip Futures Howie Lee.

March futures price of gold on the COMEX today rose to 1240.40 dollars per ounce.