NEW YORK: Gold prices eased after US Federal Reserve officials reiterated the central bank’s firm stance in its fight against inflation, after consumer price data (CPI) came out in line with expectations on Tuesday.
Data showed US CPI rose 6.4% in the 12 months through January - the smallest gain since October 2021. Last month CPI increased 0.5%, also in line with expectations.
Spot gold fell 0.3% to $1,847.53 per ounce by 11:37 a.m. ET (1637 GMT). US gold futures gained 0.1% to $1,864.50.
Gold rose by as much as 0.8% earlier in the session after the dollar fell to a near two-week low, but the dollar recouped losses and rose 0.2%, making gold more expensive for other currency holders.
It is still a concern that the Fed might feel the need to be more aggressive in regards to hiking rates and fighting inflationary pressures, which will weigh on gold, David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures, said.
After the data, Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin and Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan both said the central bank would need to focus on bringing inflation down to the 2% target.
The Fed is expected to raise its policy rate at least twice more to the 5%-5.25% range, with financial markets retaining about even odds for a further quarter-point hike in the summer.
Bullion is highly sensitive to rising US interest rates, which increase the opportunity cost of holding the zero-yield asset.
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