Gold scales 2-week peak as dollar, yields slip on Fed relief hopes

Oct 26 (Reuters) – Gold prices rose to a two-week high on Wednesday as the dollar and US bond yields slipped on expectations the Federal Reserve will temper its aggressive rate-hike stance starting December.

Spot gold rose 0.8% to USD 1,665.09 per ounce by 1:40 p.m. ET (1740 GMT) after touching its highest since Oct. 13.

US gold futures settled up 0.7% to USD 1,669.20.

“Over the course of the last couple sessions, we’ve seen yields drop, the dollar come down and as a result, we’ve seen a renewed bid in the gold market, said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures.

The dollar extended losses to a more than one-month low against its rivals, making gold less expensive for other currency holders. Benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields dropped to a one-week low.

Data on Tuesday showed that US consumer confidence ebbed in October, home prices fell sharply in August and there were signs that the Fed’s aggressive stance was starting to cool the labour market.

“We might see a slowing of the economy, but inflation may not come down as much as the Fed would like and yet they will be no longer able or willing to raise rates further and that is a very positive environment for gold,” Meger said.

However, the Fed is still widely expected to raise interest rate by 75 basis points in November. Gold is highly sensitive to rising US interest rates, as they increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion

Focus now shifts to US GDP data on Thursday, followed by US core inflation numbers on Friday that could offer more clarity on the Fed rate-hike trajectory.

If a half-point rate hike in December is likely, gold could breakout above the USD 1700 level, Edward Moya, senior analyst with OANDA, said in a note.

Spot silver rose 0.86% to USD 19.51 per ounce, platinum rose 3.8% to USD 949.54 and palladium rose 1% to USD 1,942.75.

(Reporting by Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)