Gold falls over 1% ahead of Fed meeting, Russian attempts to defuse tension

London (Mar 18)  Gold futures dropped more than 1% in New York Tuesday, settling just below a six-month high reached in the previous session as traders choose caution ahead of tomorrow’s US Federal Reserve's policy review and ongoing tensions in Crimea.

Analysts believe the Fed’s announcement, expected to include a fresh $10-billion cut to its bond-buying stimulus, will have only a limited effect on the gold price.

Bart Jaworski, mining equity analyst at Davy Research, told MINING.com he believed the Fed tapering would have a much smaller negative effect on gold going forward.

However, he said bullion prices would depend on what happens with Ukraine and he go-forward relations between Russia and the West.

Traders felt some relief Tuesday after Russian president Vladimir Putin said his country “doesn't want any more of Ukraine,” as he signed a bill to annex Ukraine's Crimea territory.

“If the Crimea [annexation] doesn’t lead to a domino effect in Eastern Ukraine, then its likely gold will revert to underlying fundamentals, which are not too supportive in the near-term,” Jaworski said.

Source: Mining.com