By Asha Sistla
(Reuters) – Gold prices were in a range-bound trade on Thursday, as markets exercised caution over the Russia-Ukraine conflict and ahead of U.S. inflation data that could offer fresh clues about the policy stance from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Spot gold was flat at $1,943.33 per ounce by 0740 GMT. U.S. gold futures were up 0.3% at $1,942.40.
“The war has dragged on for a long time and resolution seems close and people are looking at what the Fed has come now to speak about – they want to actually tackle high inflation, which means the interest rate is going to go up quite quickly this year … So the market is trying to digest what is going to be more pressing moving forward,” said Brian Lan, managing director at dealer GoldSilver Central.
“Gold prices have actually been range-bound for a while, we’ve seen the support at $1,917 and resistance at $1,950.”
Investors continued to assess the outlook for U.S. interest rates and awaited key U.S. weekly jobless claims data, a measure of the country’s economic health, due at 1230 GMT.
Ukraine’s leader called for solidarity on Thursday, a month since Russia’s invasion began.
Gold prices advanced to near record highs earlier this month, but then saw a steady decline heading into a key U.S. central bank policy meeting last week. They have since moved into a more steady range. [FEDWATCH]
Yields on the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury hit their highest in nearly three years on Wednesday, increasing the opportunity cost of holding zero-yield bullion. [US/]
Holdings of the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust rose 0.4% to 1,087.66 tonnes on Wednesday -its highest since Feb. 26, 2021. [GOL/ETF]
In other metals, spot silver XAG= was up 0.1% at $25.08 per ounce, platinum XPT= fell 0.5% to $1,015.24 and palladium XPD= rose 0.6% to $2,526.52.
(Reporting by Asha Sistla in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
