Fed Rate Freeze Expectations Boost Gold Prices

Gold prices have rebounded in August, driven by expectations of a rate freeze by the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and growing central bank purchases of gold. According to InvestingCom, gold futures for December delivery closed at $4465.42 on the New York Mercantile Exchange on the 12th, up 0.55% from the previous session.

This represents an 11.35% increase from $4005 on the 13th of last month. The price of gold futures had soared to an all-time high of $5318 at the end of January before falling to $3990 on June 24, a drop of about 25%. Since then, it has fluctuated around $4,000 until the beginning of this month.

The weakening of gold prices was affected by rising oil prices following the US-Iran war and the Fed's concerns about interest rate hikes. However, expectations for a freeze in the benchmark interest rate have weakened the outlook for a rate hike, which has contributed to the recent rebound in gold prices.