Gold slips on firmer dollar, heads for worst week since November

By Bharat Gautam

(Reuters) - Gold dipped on Friday as the dollar strengthened, with prices on course for their worst week in nearly four months as some of the safe-haven demand spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine cooled.

Spot gold slipped 0.5% to $1,932.20 per ounce, as of 1002 GMT. U.S. gold futures fell 0.5% to $1,933.10.

The dollar firmed, hurting appetite for bullion for overseas buyers. [USD/]

"These (gold and the dollar) are very choppy, headline-driven markets so we could see plenty more action throughout the day in both directions," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at OANDA, adding apparent progress in Russia-Ukraine talks was largely behind gold's weekly dip. [MKTS/GLOB]

Gold has shed about 2.7% so far this week with investors initially pricing in possibilities of aggressive interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Higher interest rates tend to raise the opportunity cost of holding non-interest paying gold.

Bullion recovered a bit after the Fed said it was raising borrowing costs along expected lines, while acknowledging the challenges presented by soaring inflation.

"Gold will remain well supported. We could increasingly see dips being bought into as the demand for safe havens and inflation hedges remains strong," Erlam said.

Spot palladium rose 2.3% to $2,567.02 per ounce, but was set for a weekly fall of about 8.8% as fears about supply from top producer Russia also eased.

Meanwhile, China's intent to tackle COVID-19 with minimal impact to the economy and people's lives, and promise of further stimulus, have brought palladium bulls back to the table, said Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index.

This follows many sessions of volatile price action that saw platinum, palladium and key metals drop to technical support levels after sharp rallies.[MET/L]

Spot silver was down 0.4% to $25.24 per ounce, while platinum rose 1.5% to $1,036.53.

 

(Reporting by Bharat Govind Gautam in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)