Gold prices extend gains as dollar sags after Trump remarks

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on the back of a weaker U.S. dollar on Tuesday, extending gains into a third session after U.S. president Donald Trump said he was "not thrilled" with the U.S. Federal Reserve for raising interest rates.

FUNDAMENTALS

Spot gold was up 0.3 percent at $1,193.97.24 an ounce at 0054 GMT. It climbed 0.5 percent in the previous session.* U.S. gold futures were up 0.5 percent at $1,200.60 an ounce.

The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of six major peers, was down 0.4 percent at 95.494. The dollar was down 0.2 percent at 109.86 yen .

Trump said on Monday he was "not thrilled" with the Federal Reserve under his own appointee, Chairman Jerome Powell, for raising interest rates and said the U.S. central bank should do more to help him to boost the economy.

Asian stocks were capped in the wake of those comments from Trump and after he accused China and Europe of manipulating their currencies. [MKTS/GLOB]

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said on Monday he was maintaining his expectation for one more interest rate hike this year, as trade tensions and international events add some downside risk to an otherwise strong U.S. outlook.

U.S. businesses have a message for the Trump administration: New tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports will force Americans to pay more for items they use throughout their daily lives, from cradles to first bicycles and wedding dresses to coffins.

Turkish authorities detained two men suspected of shooting at the U.S. Embassy in the capital Ankara on Monday, in an attack that coincides with increased tensions between the two NATO allies over the trial of a U.S. pastor in Turkey.

Meanwhile, Trump also said he did not expect much progress from trade talks with China this week in Washington.

China, seeking to skirt U.S. sanctions, will use oil tankers from Iran for its purchases of that country's crude, throwing Tehran a lifeline while European companies such as France's Total are walking away due to fear of reprisals from Washington.

(Reporting by Apeksha Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Joseph Radford)