Gold prices rise as traders await Fed minutes
NEW YORK (Feb 22) Gold prices traded higher on Wednesday as investors braced for the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting.
Price action- Gold futures for April delivery GC00, 0.28% GCJ23, 0.28% gained $8.10, or 0.4%, to $1,850 per ounce on Comex.
- Silver futures for March delivery SI00, -0.02% SIH23, -0.02% gained 2 cents, or 0.1%, to $21.91 per ounce.
- March palladium PAH23, -0.90% fell by $3.70, or 0.2%, to $1,517 per ounce, while April platinum PLJ23, 0.83% gained $8.70, or 0.9%, to trade at $957.30 per ounce.
- March copper HGH23, -0.77% delivery retreated by 3 cents, or 0.8%, to $4.19 per pound.
Gold prices are trading off their lows from earlier in the week, but investors are waiting for the minutes from the Fed meeting that ended on Feb. 1. The central bank hiked interest rates by 25 basis points at the meeting, bringing its policy rate target to a range of 4.5% to 4.75%.
“Gold has bounced back a little ahead of the publication of FOMC meeting minutes, but it is far too early to talk up the prospects of a bottom,” said Fawad Razaqzada, a market analyst at City Index and FOREX.com.
Higher Treasury yields and a stronger U.S. dollar have weighed on the price of gold in recent weeks. Both reflect expectations for higher interest rates from the Federal Reserve.
The ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, -0.06%, a gauge of the buck’s strength against a basket of rivals, was off 0.1% at 104.11. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note TMUBMUSD10Y, 3.938% was down 1.6 basis points at 3.934%.
MarketWatch
