Gold Holds Ground as Hawkish Warsh Comments Weigh on Prices
Gold prices held steady on Monday after plummeting over 3% in the previous session following Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's hawkish comments.
The US central bank chief signaled that interest rate hikes may be needed to ease inflation, sparking a sell-off in gold. However, spot gold managed to hold its ground at $4,455.29 per ounce by 0011 GMT after hitting its lowest level since August 19 earlier in the session.
The market now sees a 57% chance of a rate hike at the Fed's next policy meeting in September, up from 36% prior to Warsh's comments, according to the CME FedWatch tool. This increase in probability weighed on gold prices, as higher interest rates often make holding non-yielding assets like gold less attractive.
In other metals, spot silver was flat at $66.34 per ounce, platinum edged 0.1% higher at $1,822.46, while palladium gained 0.2% to $1,424.89.