LONDON, May 21: Gold inched higher on Monday after hitting a two-month low last week but may struggle to bounce in the short term as sentiment has turned bearish, traders said.

Gold was quoted at $661.20/661.70 an ounce compared with $660.90/662.40 in New York late on Friday, when prices fell as low as $655.50.

Analysts said bullion market sentiment among holders of large speculative accounts of gold was changing, with investors becoming bearish in the near term.

The net speculative long position in New York gold futures fell by 3.6 million ounces as of May 15, according to a report released by the CFTC on Friday.

The outlook for silver does not look promising in the interim, with the metal still likely to come under pressure. A period of consolidation in the high-$12's is likely, Standard Bank said in a note.—Reuters