Gold prices were hemmed into a narrow range on Wednesday as investors held back from making large bets ahead of key US inflation data due later this week.
Spot gold was little changed at $1,875.68 per ounce as of 0242 GMT, hovering near the eight-month high hit on Monday.
US gold futures rose 0.2% to $1,879.30.
It looks like gold is currently consolidating into a range as the focus turns to the US consumer price index (CPI) data on Thursday, said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastytlive.
“If the data shows that inflation is softer, then gold might go north of the $1,900 level. However, it would be interesting to see if gold can get much traction beyond that.”
Gold is considered an inflation hedge but is highly sensitive to rising interest rates, which increases the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding bullion.
Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman said on Tuesday that the US central bank will have to raise rates further to combat high inflation and that will likely lead to softer job market conditions.
Spot silver rose 0.1% to $23.63 while platinum fell 0.5% to $1,075.11.
Palladium slipped 0.4% to $1,774.13.
Automakers embed palladium in exhaust pipes to neutralise harmful emissions, but the metal isn’t required for that function in electric vehicles (EVs).
The expansion of EVs is expected to continue in 2023, leading to a small overall decline in palladium’s demand for cars, despite an expected increase in overall new cars across markets, analysts at Heraeus Precious Metals said in a note.