Gold rose 1 percent on Thursday, rebounding from near six-year lows as indications from the US Federal Reserve that it may move cautiously into the rate hiking cycle weighed on the dollar and prompted investors to cover short positions. Fed officials on Wednesday continued to flag December as a likely time for US interest rates to rise after seven years near zero, but the central bank signalled an intention to proceed slowly and steadily after that.
Rising rates tend to weigh on gold, as they lift the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion, while boosting the dollar, in which it is priced. Expectations that rates will rise have pushed gold prices down 9 percent this year. Spot gold was up 1 percent at $1,081.01 an ounce at 2:51 pm EST (1951 GMT), after rising as much as 1.5 percent to $1,086.10. The metal hit its weakest since February 2010 on Wednesday at $1,064.85.
US gold futures for December delivery settled up 0.9 percent at $1,077.90. "It was a consolidation (day) and certainly with the dollar weakening, that took one of gold's biggest burdens away," said Bill O'Neill, co-founder of commodities investment firm Logic Advisors in New Jersey. Silver was up 0.4 percent at $14.23 an ounce. Platinum was up 0.5 percent at $851.49 an ounce, recovering from Wednesday's seven-year low reached despite an expected deficit this year. Palladium was up 0.8 percent at $537.60 an ounce after falling to the lowest since late-August at $523.35.
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