By Ashitha Shivaprasad
(Reuters) – Gold prices dipped on Wednesday as the dollar edged up, while market participants assessed the timeline for potential U.S. interest rate cuts and were on the lookout for fresh cues for further clarity on monetary policy.
Spot gold was down 0.1% at $2,311.07 per ounce as of 0235 GMT. U.S. gold futures fell 0.3% to $2,316.60.
The dollar index rose 0.1%, making greenback-priced gold more expensive for other currency holders. [USD/]
This week’s economic calendar includes the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment reading on Friday and comments from a slew of Fed officials. The U.S. consumer price index data is due on May 15.
“The Fed is worried about inflation, but isn’t going to hike rates more and still wants to cut if it gets a chance – this is the story. Not much will happen to the story until we get CPI next week,” Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive, said.
If the upcoming reports show scary inflation, then the Fed can’t cut rates and it will pressure gold, he added.
Bullion is used as a hedge against inflation, but higher rates reduce the appeal of holding the non-yielding asset.
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said on Tuesday that stalled inflation buoyed in part by housing market strength means the U.S. central bank will need to hold borrowing costs steady for an “extended period,” and possibly all year.
Markets are currently seeing a 65% chance of a U.S. rate cut in September, as per CME’s FedWatch Tool.
Elsewhere, China’s central bank added 60,000 troy ounces of bullion to its reserves in April, official data showed on Tuesday, extending the period of consecutive purchases to 18 months.
“I would say, keep watching China because it is a wild card here,” Spivak said.
Spot silver fell 0.2% to $27.23 per ounce, platinum eased 0.2% to $974.24 and palladium steadied at $970.84.
(Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Varun H K)
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