[BRIEFING.COM] The stock market has made a couple of attempts to free itself from choppy trade by pushing toward positive territory. It has twice been rebuffed at the neutral line, however.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar continues to trade with strength, though it has eased back from earlier levels so that the Dollar Index now trades with a 0.4% gain.

The greenback's pullback has induced more interest in gold. The yellow metal was recently up 2% to $1075.00 per ounce, which is a new record high. That has helped shares of Barrick Gold (ABX 38.70, +2.19), Yamana Gold (AUY 11.42, +0.61), and Newmont Mining (NEM 45.96, +2.39) outperform the broader equity market. It has also helped Kinross Gold (KGC 18.20, -0.09) mitigate the impact of a disappointing quarterly report that featured a breakeven net, which was below the consensus estimate. Moreover, the SPDR Gold Trust (GLD 105.70, +1.75) has made its way to a new 52-week high.