Gold Edges Higher as Investors Await Powell's Testimony

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster):  Gold prices inched higher on Tuesday, as the dollar remained soft, with investors awaiting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's testimony and June inflation data to assess the U.S. central bank policy path.

Spot gold rose 0.2% at $2,363.71 per ounce, as of 0702 GMT. U.S. gold futures firmed 0.3% to $2,369.80.

The U.S. dollar hung near a multi-week low versus major peers, making bullion cheaper for other currency holders.

Powell will deliver two days of testimony before Congress, beginning later in the day with the Senate and followed by the House on Wednesday.

"If Powell directly or indirectly implies that weakness is seeping through the U.S. economy, then it will be positive for gold," said Kelvin Wong, OANDA's senior market analyst for Asia Pacific.

A jobs report on Friday showed U.S. unemployment rate climbed to 4.1%. Markets are pricing in a 77% chance of a rate cut in September and a second one by December, according to the CME's Fedwatch Tool.

Non-yielding bullion's appeal tends to shine in a lower interest rate environment.

Softer inflation readings could see gold prices test the resistance level of $2,410 in the short term, Wong said.

The market was also awaiting June consumer and producer price indexes data scheduled to be released later this week.

Physical gold demand likely softened in the second quarter but it should rebound into year-end, analysts at Citi said.

Underlying gold consumption growth is still trending positive for 2024 and could help push spot prices towards $2,400-$2,600 in the second half as financial investors play catch-up, they added.

Spot silver rose 0.8% to $31.02 per ounce, platinum edged 1% higher to $1,006.35 and palladium gained 1.1% to $1,020.20.

The Guangzhou Futures Exchange said it plans to launch its first platinum and palladium futures contracts in China.

Courtesy: www.reuters.com