Gold prices rose in European trade on Monday, resuming gains and approaching a record high above $3000.
The gains are boosted by the US dollar’s weakness ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting this week to discuss economic developments and monetary policies.
Prices
Gold prices rose 0.35% to $2994 an ounce, with a session-low at $2982.
On Friday, gold prices lost 0.15%, the first loss in four days on profit-taking after hitting a record high at $3004.
Last week, gold rose 2.6%, the second weekly profit in a row and the largest this year on strong haven demand due to global trade concerns.
US Dollar
The dollar index fell over 0.1% today against a basket of major rivals, underpinning gold prices.
Recent US data showed consumer confidence hit 2-⅕ year lows in March in a sign of increasing concerns about recession.
Fed’s Meeting
The Federal Reserve is convening tomorrow and Wednesday to discuss policies, widely expected to maintain interest rates unchanged while providing clues on the path ahead for monetary policies.
Data released last week showed US consumer prices slowed down more than expected in February, bolstering the case for a Fed rate cut in the first half of the year.
According to the Fedwatch tool, the odds of a Fed 0.25% rate cut in March stood at just 1%, while the odds of a May rate cut stood at 30%.
The odds of a Fed June 0.25% interest rate cut stood at 75%.
SPDR
Gold holdings at the SPDR Gold Trust rose by 0.6 tons on Friday to a total of 906.41 tons, the highest since February 25.
