(Bloomberg) -- Gold steadied as the dollar held an advance, with investors on the sidelines before the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting.
Bullion slipped Tuesday to snap four days of gains amid mixed U.S. economic data and lingering concerns over the global recovery as the delta coronavirus strain spreads. U.S. retail sales fell in July by more than forecast, while production at factories strengthened by the most in four months.
Traders are turning their focus to the Fed minutes due Wednesday and next week’s Jackson Hole symposium, which may offer clues on the timing of the central bank’s tapering. In a town hall meeting Tuesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell flagged that the pandemic is “still casting a shadow on economic activity” but didn’t discuss the outlook for monetary policy or make specific comments on growth and the risks from the delta variant.
“The biggest positive in gold’s corner may be that the market has likely accounted for coming asset purchase reductions,” said James Steel, chief precious metals analyst at HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. “While this does not argue that gold will go higher, it supports the notion that gold may not go much lower. We think gold may be stalled in front of $1,800 an ounce.”
Spot gold was little changed at $1,785.19 an ounce at 8:44 a.m. in Singapore after slipping 0.1% Tuesday. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index steadied after a 0.5% gain in the previous session. Silver was steady, while palladium and platinum rose.
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