Gold prices firm as US dollar slides; rate-hike concerns cap upside

Gold prices rose on Tuesday as a weaker dollar lifted bullion's appeal for overseas buyers, although risks from interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve limited further gains

Gold prices rose on Tuesday as a weaker dollar lifted bullion's appeal for overseas buyers, although risks from the imminent supersized interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve limited further gains.

Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,653.31 per ounce, as of 0709 GMT.

U.S. gold futures were down 0.3% at $1,658.50.

The dollar index fell to a 1-1/2-week low as sterling jumped following the UK's dramatic U-turn over the tax-slashing mini budget that had rattled global markets.

Gold's rise on Tuesday is mainly attributable to the weakness in the greenback, said Jigar Trivedi, a senior analyst at Mumbai-based Reliance Securities.

However, "the investment demand and retail demand have been muted and there is no major trigger that can take prices above $1,700 in the near term... There are still concerns related to the interest rate hikes," Trivedi added. [GOL/ETF] [GOL/AS]

Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, fell to 939.10 tonnes on Monday, its lowest level since March 2020.

Gold has fallen nearly 10% so far this year as sharp U.S. rate hike increased the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding asset and boosted the dollar and bond yields.

A significant drop in the 10-year yields would be required to create a significant impulse to send gold higher, said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

A fourth straight 75-basis-point Fed rate hike is expected next month after data last week showed inflation increasing strongly in September.

According to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao, spot gold looks neutral in a range of $1,641-$1,658 per ounce, and an escape could suggest a direction.

Spot silver rose 0.4% to $18.75 per ounce, platinum was 0.4% higher at $919.49 and palladium gained 1% to $2,020.40.

(Reporting by Eileen Soreng in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Rashmi Aich, and Uttaresh.V)