Gold prices steady ahead of Fed rate decision

London (Sept 26)  A strong dollar makes dollar-priced gold costlier for non-U.S. investors, while rising U.S. interest rates typically deter investors from buying a non-yielding asset such as gold.

The dollar index , which weighs the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was almost flat at 94.117. Gold dropped about 12 percent since hitting a peak in April, marred by rising U.S. interest rates and a global trade war that has led investors to choose the dollar as a safe haven rather than gold. "People are realizing that the trade war is likely going to continue. It is benefiting the U.S. dollar now, but it could affect the U.S. economy as well, hurting the dollar (and boosting gold)," Sharma said.

U.S. President Donald Trump's top trade official said on Tuesday that changing China's economic policies to become more market-oriented "is not going to be easy" even with tariffs now in place on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods. Among other precious metals, spot palladium slipped 0.3 percent to $1,058.24 an ounce, after marking its highest since late-January at $1,068.50 in the previous session.

Silver rose 0.5 percent at $14.48, moving closer to
 a more than three-week high of $14.56 reached on Tuesday.

Platinum rose 0.4 percent to $825.90 per ounce.

Reuters