Gold dips as dollar climbs ahead of U.S. inflation data

Gold fell on Tuesday as a stronger dollar dimmed appetite for bullion, while investors awaited U.S. inflation data for clues on when the Federal Reserve will begin tapering its monetary stimulus.

Spot gold fell 0.3% to $1,893.51 per ounce, while U.S. gold futures eased 0.1% to $1,896.30.

The dollar index strengthened 0.2%, making gold more expensive for other currency holders.

With gold having faltered at $1,900 a couple of times, “it’s almost certainly going to mean that some people will be trading that range and just coming in and coming out… It’s called jobbing the market,” said StoneX analyst Rhona O’Connell.

Market participants also took stock of U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s comments that President Joe Biden’s $4 trillion spending plan would be good for the U.S., even if it contributes to rising inflation and results in higher interest rates.

On investors’ radar is the European Central Bank’s policy meeting on Thursday, the same day that U.S. consumer price index data will be released.

“If they (inflation figures) turn out to be higher than expected once again, the debate about an earlier U.S. Fed exit from its ultra-expansionary monetary policy could flare up again,” Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch said in a note.

This would have a negative impact on gold, at least in the short term, as bond yields would also rise in response and the dollar would appreciate, Fritsch added.

Indicative of sentiment, holdings of the largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, the SPDR Gold Trust, fell 0.6% on Monday from Friday.

Meanwhile, silver fell 0.8% to $27.66 per ounce, palladium dropped 0.6% to $2,815.99, while platinum slipped 0.9% to $1,162.05.