Gold rises as U.S. healthcare vote delay weighs on stocks, dollar

By Vijaykumar Vedala

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Wednesday as the dollar struggled and shares weakened after a vote on U.S. healthcare reforms was postponed and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi hinted that the ECB could trim its stimulus this year.

Asian shares fell on Wednesday after Wall Street fumbled as U.S. Senate Republican leaders delayed a vote on a healthcare overhaul on Tuesday until next month, adding to investor worries about President Donald Trump's ability to deliver on his promises of tax reform and deregulation.

Also on Tuesday, Draghi opened the door to tweaks in the ECB's previously aggressive stimulus policy, fuelling market expectations that the central bank could announce a reduction of stimulus as soon as September.

Gold is used as an alternative investment during times of political and financial uncertainty.

"Donald Trump's difficulties on healthcare - an issue the entire Republican party appears united on in general - potentially highlight the troubles he may have further down the road on other policies that do not have such support," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst, OANDA.

Spot gold rose 0.5 percent to $1,253.68 per ounce by 0817 GMT.

U.S. gold futures for August delivery was up 0.6 percent to $1,253.90 per ounce.

"The dollar and the equities are on the back foot at the moment, providing a little support to gold," a Sydney-based trader said.

Wall Street's volatility index, which measures implied volatility of stock options and is often seen as an investor fear gauge, rose nearly 12 percent on Tuesday providing some additional support, the trader said.

The dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a basket of six currencies, slipped on Wednesday to its lowest since November 2016.

A weaker dollar usually gives a boost to dollar-denominated commodities as they become less expensive for those holding other currencies.

Investors will also be looking for signals on when and how monetary accommodation will be removed with several central bankers set to participate in the European Central Bank Forum on Central Banking in Portugal, Erlam said.

Among other precious metals, spot silver gained 0.9 percent to $16.81 an ounce.

Silver is biased to revisit its Dec. 14, 2015, low of $13.60 per ounce over the next three months, as suggested by its wave pattern and a Fibonacci retracement analysis, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

Platinum rose 0.2 percent to $918.65 and palladium edged up 0.3 percent at $860.20.

(Reporting by Vijaykumar Vedala; Additional reporting by Nithin Prasad; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri and Tom Hogue)