By Harshit Verma
(Reuters) – Gold eased on Monday as the U.S. dollar stood strong after U.S. Federal Reserve officials flagged that interest rates would remain higher for longer, although moves were limited as investors look forward to inflation data later this week.
Spot gold was down 0.2% to $1,920.90 per ounce by 0950 GMT, while U.S. gold futures also fell 0.2% to $1,941.60.
Gold is in a consolidation phase after prices failed to remain above $1,930 an ounce last week, said Carlo Alberto De Casa, market analyst at Kinesis Money, adding that bullion could be further pressured towards the key psychological $1,900 level, if the Fed raises rates.
Higher interest rates discourage purchases of non-interest-paying bullion, which is priced in dollars.
Fed officials warned on Friday of further rate hikes even after voting to hold the benchmark rate steady last week, with three policymakers saying they remain uncertain about whether the inflation battle is over.
The dollar hovered around a more than six-month high, while benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were near their 16-year peak.
Investors are now looking towards the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, which is scheduled to be released on Sept. 29.
Reflecting investor sentiment, SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed ETF, said its holdings fell on Friday to their lowest level since Jan. 2020.
In other metals, spot silver rose 0.3% to $23.48 per ounce, platinum shed 0.8% to $919.17 and palladium dropped 0.6% to $1,241.98.
“Lower Chinese palladium imports as a result of likely destocking could be another factor weighing on prices, alongside the ongoing substitution from palladium to platinum in auto catalysts,” UBS said in a note.
A share of around 90% of total demand and a lack of alternative sectors aside from modest industrial, jewelry, and investment demand make the metal very sensitive to the increase in EVs and the phasing out of combustion vehicles in Europe, they added.
(Reporting by Harshit Verma in Bengaluru; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
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