Gold prices slipped again on Friday with the safe haven metal pressured by rising US bond yields, while investors await next week’s inflation data for more clues on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut path.
Spot gold was down 0.6% at $2,021.50 per ounce as of 11:50 a.m. ET, for a weekly decline of 0.5%. US gold futures also fell by 0.6%, trading at $2,035.20 per ounce in New York.
[Click here for an interactive chart of gold prices]
Meanwhile, the benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields rose to a two-week high and two-year yields hit almost a two-month high, making the non-yielding bullion less enticing for investors.
The Fed seems like it is going to keep rates higher for longer, which means most central banks will probably follow suit, said Everett Millman, chief market analyst at Gainesville Coins, in a Reuters note.
“I do think that things are trending lower for the gold price, there is a pretty strong floor support at about $1,960 that I don’t expect to see gold go below,” he added.
Several Fed officials, including Chairman Jerome Powell, have said this week they want to see more evidence inflation will continue to decline before cutting rates.
US monthly consumer prices rose less than initially estimated in December, revised government data showed on Friday. Market participants now await the consumer price index (CPI) figures for January, due on Tuesday.
Traders now see about a 62% chance of an interest rate cut in May, according to the CME Fedwatch tool.
Elsewhere, palladium fell 2.9% to $861.06 per ounce and platinum was down 1.3% to $873.97. Prices of both metals were heading for a second weekly dip.
(With files from Reuters)
Source: MINING.COM – Read More
