In Asian trading on Monday, gold prices experienced an uptick, albeit remaining below recent record highs, primarily due to the persistent strength of the US dollar, which exerted pressure on metal markets.
Investors, awaiting further cues on US inflation and interest rates, maintained a strong bias towards the dollar. Despite the dollar’s dominance, some buying activity was observed in metal markets following significant losses on Friday.
At 01:13 ET (05:13 GMT), spot gold increased by 0.2% to $2,169.77 per ounce, while gold futures expiring in April rose by 0.5% to $2,170.55 per ounce.
Gold’s Retreat from Record Highs, Dollar’s Resilience
Gold prices traded notably below the record highs reached last week, a period during which signals of potential interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve had propelled strong gains in the yellow metal.
However, towards the end of the week, gold experienced a sharp decline from these record highs. This decline coincided with dovish signals from other central banks, prompting investors to predominantly pivot towards the dollar as the sole high-yielding, low-risk currency.
The dollar index surged by 0.4% on Monday to reach a one-month high. The dollar’s strength was further fueled by anticipation surrounding the release of the PCE price index data, the Fed‘s preferred inflation gauge, scheduled for later in the week. Additionally, comments from various Fed officials throughout the week also contributed to the dollar’s resilience.
Mixed Performance in Precious Metals
In contrast to gold, other precious metals displayed a mixed performance on Monday following steep declines in the previous session. Platinum futures recorded a 0.6% increase, reaching $913.40 per ounce, while silver futures witnessed a marginal decline of 0.1% to settle at $24.812 per ounce.
