Gold prices ease as firm US dollar weighs
- Date: 19-Apr-2022
- Source: Zawya
- Sector:Financial Markets
- Country:Middle East
Gold prices ease as firm US dollar weighs
Gold edged lower on Tuesday as the dollar strengthened, with expectations that prices in the near-term could retest bullion's resistance at the key $2,000 per-ounce level.
Spot gold was down 0.2% at $1,975.36 per ounce, as of 0623 GMT. U.S. gold futures slipped 0.4% to $1,978.40. Gold climbed to an over one-month high of $1,998.10 on Monday, buoyed by safe-haven demand, as the Ukraine crisis dragged on and inflation concerns mounted.
However, the metal later gave up most gains as the dollar and U.S. 10-year Treasury yields strengthened. "That ($2,000 per ounce) is quite a critical level, and the fact that gold effectively closed flat on the day means there appears to be a slight hesitancy to push immediately higher," said City Index's senior market analyst Matt Simpson. "Gold has the ability to overcome the U.S. dollar strength and break above $2,000 possibly over the next week or so."
The dollar firmed to its highest since April 2020 as investors braced for multiple half a percentage-point rate hikes from the Federal Reserve as it seeks to rein in soaring inflation. While bullion is considered a safe store of value during times of political and economic crises, as well as a hedge against inflation,