Gold prices are trading somewhat steadily today but still under the influence of the strong dollar, which is stopping the precious metal from scoring any serious gains.
The main event for gold traders is now the US CPI which will be released at 12:30 GMT. The data will give us two important answers. Firstly, it will give us some clues about the size of the likely interest rate hike by the US Fed. Secondly, it will also give us a clue about a potential interest rate hike for the Fed meeting after the next one.
If the US inflation numbers come out strong, we are highly likely to see another interest rate hike of 75 basis points from the Fed, and that may be the pace going forward also.
This scenario could push the gold prices towards $1650 or even lower. However, if inflation numbers show modest strength, then we could actually see speculations of a 50-basis point interest rate—a highly unlikely scenario but certainly a possibility. This could easily push the price of gold higher, and we may see the precious metal moving above the resistance level of $1,700