By Rahul Paswan
(Reuters) – Gold prices hovered near record highs on Monday, helped by weakness in the U.S. dollar, with attention shifting to a key inflation report later this week.
Spot gold rose 0.1% to $2,939.91 an ounce as of 0703 GMT. Bullion had scaled an all-time high of $2,954.69 on Thursday. [GOL/]
U.S. gold futures traded flat at $2,953.30.
“Disappointing U.S. macro data at the tail end of last week has caught up with the dollar, which has opened the door higher for gold,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade. [USD/]
“With trade uncertainties not looking like they are disappearing anytime soon, gold could still be eyeing off reaching new all-time highs again this week.”
Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened fresh tariffs over the next month or sooner, adding lumber and forest products to previously announced plans to impose duties on imported cars, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals.
Markets will shift focus towards the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) print, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation measure, due on Friday, for more insights into the central bank’s interest rate trajectory.
If inflationary pressures lead the Fed to keep rates high, gold’s appeal as a non-yielding asset could diminish.
To breach the $3,000 mark, gold needs a very strong reason as the war premium seems to have waned a little, while other supporting factors supporting bullion are already discounted, said Ajay Kedia, director at Mumbai-based Kedia Commodities.
On the geopolitical front, Trump reversed course on Friday to say that Russia did in fact invade Ukraine and that Kyiv would soon sign a minerals agreement with the U.S. as part of efforts to end the war.
Spot silver gained 0.4% at $32.65 an ounce and platinum added 0.3% to $972.68. Palladium shed 0.4% to $965.81.
(Reporting by Rahul Paswan in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K, Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Sumana Nandy)
