The gold price declined this week as the safe-haven interest in the market shifted to the US dollar. On Thursday, investors sought refuge from the dollar as risk-on sentiment waned and the Federal Reserve expressed concern about the slow economic recovery.

Gold struggles while the dollar ticks higher

On Wednesday, gold fell to its lowest level since Jan. 18. Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann told CNBC that the Fed meeting didn't positively impact gold because the dollar strengthened before and after the meeting. Investors turned to the dollar as a safe haven because other factors weighed on gold prices.

Gold is now set for its worst start to a year in 10 years, while the dollar climbs. According to Bloomberg, the yellow metal is down 3% in January as haven demand eases. That's gold's worst January performance since 2011. 

Trading gold versus the dollar

Historically, gold has been negatively correlated with the dollar, although that negative correlation has broken down frequently, usually during periods of disruption in the market. There are many ways to trade gold, including in the forex markets. Some popular US forex trading brokers, like Forex.com as TopBrokers.com reports - do so in pairs like XAU (gold)/ USD.

In the forex market, gold is traded like a currency rather than an asset. In most cases, gold is paired with the US dollar in the forex market rather than other currencies. That means if you are planning to trade gold, you must always watch to see what the dollar is doing.

DailyFX suggests trading gold with forex brokers in the USA. One way to do this is by using a spread-betting platform, which involves buying or selling gold depending on whether you believe the price will increase or decrease.

One benefit of trading gold over fiat currencies is the fact that it is a store of value that isn't affected by what the world's central banks do. Gold prices aren't directly influenced by fiscal or monetary policy, although they are indirectly affected. Additionally, the yellow metal will always be worth something, unlike some fiat currencies which become worthless due to runaway inflation.

Safe-haven trades

Gold and the dollar aren't the only safe-haven currencies in the forex market. The Japanese yen and the Swiss franc are also considered safe havens, as are Treasury notes and bonds. Stocks tend to fall when safe-haven currencies rise because investors are looking for a place to put their money where there is less risk. On the other hand, when risk-on sentiment is ruling the market, investors usually sell their safe-haven currencies in favor of stocks or other riskier assets.

If you are thinking about trading gold with Forex brokers from the United States, you will want to learn about technical analysis, which indicates how gold prices are trending. Your strategy should change depending on what the market is doing. For example, a momentum strategy may work best if the market is trending. On the other hand, if gold prices are range-bound, a low volatility strategy might work best. The easiest way to get started trading gold on the forex markets is by looking at previous highs and lows, trendlines and chart patterns. If the price keeps making new highs, you know there is momentum in the market.