Gold flat as dollar ticks higher, U.S. stimulus talks drag

Gold prices were listless on Friday, with gains kept in check by a slight uptick in the dollar and caution setting in as investors grappled with a delay in a U.S. COVID-19 relief package.

Spot gold was little changed at $1,834.55 per ounce at 1047 GMT. U.S. gold futures were flat at $1,838.10.

"Market seems to have settled in a steady range. The key drivers (going forward) would be the size and scale of the U.S. stimulus, the trajectory of the dollar, and inflation of course," said independent analyst Ross Norman.

"Gold's got half an eye on vaccines, stimulus and dollar. But the effect is muted. Market has thinned out already."

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday that Congress could work on a COVID-19 relief package until Dec. 26, when a range of emergency aid programs are set to expire.

The dollar index inched 0.1pc higher, making bullion expensive for holders of other currency, and was headed for its first weekly gain in four.

"Technically the first support zone is now placed at $1,830... For a clearer bullish signal we would now need the price to surpass the top reached earlier this week at $1,875," ActivTrades' chief analyst Carlo Alberto De Casa said in a note

Gold, seen as a hedge against inflation and currency debasement, has risen 21pc this year amid massive amounts of stimulus measures aimed at reviving pandemic-hit economies.

"We will get a stimulus deal by the end of the month and the U.S. Federal Reserve will maintain its very loose monetary stance and that should help underpin gold into 2021," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK.

Silver fell 0.4pc to $23.86 per ounce. Palladium was flat at $2,330.66 per ounce and platinum declined 0.8pc to $1,018.10 per ounce