By Ishaan Arora
(Reuters) -Gold prices edged higher on Tuesday, buoyed by a weaker dollar amid prospects of lower U.S. interest rates, while investors looked ahead to the Federal Reserve chair’s speech at Jackson Hole later this week.
Spot gold was up 0.2% at $3,336.88 per ounce by 0814 GMT. U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 0.1% at $3,381.20.
The dollar index <.DXY> fell 0.1% against its rivals, making gold less expensive for other currency holders. [USD/]
“Gold has been in a tight range over recent weeks, being pulled in different directions amid the ebb and flow of trade frictions, efforts to secure a Russia-Ukraine peace deal, and weak U.S. labor data, but we believe the risks will drive it higher over the medium term,” said UBS commodity analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that the U.S. would help guarantee Ukraine’s security in any deal to end the war with Russia, though the extent of any assistance was not immediately clear.
Trump hosted Zelenskiy and a group of European allies days after he met with Putin in Alaska, which ended without an agreement.
Meanwhile, market attention is on Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks at the Jackson Hole symposium through August 21-23, which could offer clarity on the central bank’s economic outlook.
Investors expect an 83% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut at the Fed’s September meeting, per the CME FedWatch tool,
“With several data points between now and the next FOMC meeting there might be no commitment (from the Fed) on next steps,” UBS’ Staunovo said.
Minutes from the Fed’s July meeting, due for release on Wednesday, are also expected to provide cues into the United States’ economic outlook.
Elsewhere, spot silver fell 0.1% to $37.97 per ounce, platinum was up 0.6% at $1,330.80 and palladium lost 0.6% to $1,115.37.
(Reporting by Ishaan Arora in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
