Gold prices touched a more than three-month low on Thursday, falling for a third straight session, as top central banks reiterated their hawkish monetary policy stance to cool bubbling price pressures.
Spot gold fell 0.2% to $1,903.69 per ounce by 0635 GMT, its lowest since mid-March. U.S. gold futures dropped 0.5% to $1,911.80.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell did not rule out an interest rate hike at the central bank’s next meeting, as leaders of the world’s top central banks see further policy tightening.
Gold retreats on bets for hawkish Fed strategy
Powell’s hawkish remarks reinforced interest rates going higher for longer, with a greater opportunity cost of holding gold dimming the appeal of the metal, said OCBC FX strategist Christopher Wong.
Bullion has dropped about 3% so far in June and looks set to end the quarter in the negative territory for the first time since September 2022, as traders pushed back expectations for an end to the rate hike cycle.
The prospect of higher interest rates weighs on non-interest bearing gold, which was also pressured as the dollar climbed to two-week highs. Since gold is priced in dollars, a stronger U.S. currency makes gold more expensive for oversees buyers.
Market participants are now awaiting initial U.S. jobless claims and final first-quarter GDP numbers due later in the day, along with personal consumption expenditures (PCE) data for May on Friday.
“If U.S. economic data is much worse than expected, then I see gold benefiting and moving higher with resistance at $1,930. However, if data comes in as expected or close enough then the higher-for-longer (rates) narrative remains secure,” said Nicholas Frappell, global head of institutional markets, ABC Refinery.
Spot silver was down 0.1% at $22.69 per ounce, while platinum rose 0.3% to $913.63.
Palladium eased 0.2% to $1,245.87, but was still holding above Wednesday’s 4-1/2-year low of $1,208.50.
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