Online Reporter
Gold advanced — after its first back-to-back weekly loss this year — as investors mulled an uncertain outlook for global trade and the US economy ahead of a Federal Reserve rate decision this week.
Bullion traded above US$3 260 an ounce, after falling 2,4 percent last week. The Fed is widely expected to hold rates steady when its meets on Tuesday and Wednesday, despite President Donald Trump ratcheting up pressure on Chair Jerome Powell, saying surprisingly strong job data last week meant there was no reason not to cut interest rates.
Gold has surged almost a quarter so far this year, hitting a record above US$3 500 an ounce in April, before losing some ground in the last couple of weeks.
The ascent has been driven by haven buying due to Trump’s highly disruptive trade and geopolitical policies, as well as speculative demand in China and global central-bank buying.
Spot gold rose 0,8 percent at US$3 264.72 an ounce as of 9:25 a.m. in Singapore. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was down 0,3 percent.
Silver edged higher, while platinum and palladium were steady.
Investors were also weighing the latest comments on trade from Trump, who said late Sunday that he had no plans to talk to his Chinese counterpart this week. In aired comments on NBC earlier in the day, the president said that he is willing to lower tariffs on China at some point because the levies now are so high that the world’s two largest economies have essentially stopped doing business with each other. — Bloomberg
