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Gold prices were set for a second
weekly gain as talks between Russia and Ukraine made little
apparent progress, although bullion saw a dip on Friday as
elevated US Treasury yields on the back of inflation data
asserted its safe-haven appeal.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was down 0.2% at $1,992.94 per ounce, as
of 0203 GMT. US gold futures were flat at $2,000.10.
* Bullion gained about 1.2% so far this week.
* There was no breakthrough in the first high-level talks
between foreign ministers from Russia and Ukraine, who met in
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Turkey on Thursday since Moscow invaded its neighbor.
* Benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields rose on Thursday
and topped 2% for the first time in two weeks after US
inflation data confirmed rapidly rising prices, locking in
expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates
next week.
* Gold is highly sensitive to rising US interest rates,
which increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding
bullion.
* Investors took stock of the US inflation data, which was
in line with expectations but also showed the biggest
year-on-year increase since January 1982.
* The European Central Bank took a hawkish turn on Thursday
saying it would end its asset purchases this summer, paving the
way for a rate hike later in the year.
* The US Federal Reserve is scheduled to announce its next
policy statement on March 16.
* Palladium , used by automakers in catalytic
converters to curb emissions, was down 0.5% at $2,914.78 per
ounce. The metal hit a record high of $3,440.76 on Monday,
driven by fears of supply disruptions from top producer Russia.
* Among other metals, spot silver shed 0.7% to $25.70
per ounce, while platinum fell 0.6% to $1,062.01 and was
set for its worst weekly decline since November 2021.
(Reporting by Asha Sistla in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry
Jacob-Phillips)
financialpost.com