Gold heads for second weekly loss, investors eye US inflation data
NEW YORK: Gold prices fell on Friday, poised for a second consecutive weekly loss as a slight uptick in the dollar pressured bullion while markets awaited US inflation data for signals on Federal Reserve rate policy.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was down 0.4 per cent at US$3,314.27 per ounce, as of 0051 GMT. Bullion was down 1.6 per cent so far this week.
* US gold futures fell 0.6 per cent to US$3,327.
* The dollar rose 0.3 per cent against its rivals, making greenback-priced bullion more expensive for overseas buyers.
* Data showed the US economy contracted faster than previously estimated in the first quarter, weighed down by muted consumer spending and tariff-related disruptions.
* Weekly jobless claims dropped, but businesses remain cautious about hiring, raising concerns over unemployment potentially rising in June.
* Investors are awaiting Friday's US core personal consumption expenditure (PCE) data for further insight into the Federal Reserve's monetary policy outlook, with analysts polled by Reuters forecasting a 0.1 per cent monthly increase and a 2.6 per cent annual rise.
* Markets currently pricing in a 64-basis-point rate cut this year, starting in September.
* President Donald Trump says that tame inflation means the Federal Reserve should already be reducing its policy rate, but inside the US central bank the idea has little traction, with only two Fed policymakers to date embracing the possibility of a rate cut at the central bank's next meeting in July.
* Trump has not decided on a replacement for Fed Chair Jerome Powell and a decision isn't imminent, a person familiar with the White House's deliberations said on Thursday.
* Elsewhere, Trump said on Thursday the US signed an agreement with China on Wednesday related to trade, but he did not specify what he was talking about.
* Spot silver was steady at US$36.59 per ounce, platinum firmed 0.6 per cent to US$1,426.19, while palladium gained 3.2 per cent at US$1,167.64. All three metals were headed for weekly gain.
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