Gold Treads Water Ahead of US Inflation Reports and Fed Meeting

Gold prices remain stuck in a tight band around $4,400 per ounce, as investors await this week's US inflation reports and next week's Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting.

The spot gold price is currently trading at $4,400.32 per ounce, essentially flat from the previous session, while December-delivery gold futures settled up 0.49% at $4,460.70 per ounce in New York.

Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Denmark's Saxo Bank, suggests that some day traders may have covered short positions, citing gold's resilience despite rising oil prices and dollar weakness.

Rising Treasury yields and Middle East-driven inflation concerns are capping near-term upside for gold, with the market placing greater weight on the Fed's tightening bias rather than the inflation hedge scenario.

The US Treasury announced an expansion of its long-term bond buyback program to as much as $6 billion, but the move fell short of market expectations, putting renewed upward pressure on the 10-year Treasury yield and adding headwinds for bullion.