Gold price eases as investors book profits, dollar strengthens

Gold price eased on Wednesday as the US dollar strengthened and as investors locked in profit following a more than 1% jump in the last session, but uncertainty over the US-China trade dispute and the global economy kept safe-haven bullion near a multi-year peak. Spot gold fell 0.1% to $1,541.20 per ounce at 1:36 p.m. EDT (1736 GMT).  On Monday, it touched $1,554.56, its highest since April 2013. US gold futures settled down 0.2% at $1,549.10 per ounce.

"We aren`t seeing any additional tensions. A lot of the news - the trade war and economic concerns - has been factored in by the market over the last few days," said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures, adding profit-taking following the rally in response to a firmer dollar was weighing on gold.

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The dollar rose 0.2%, making gold more expensive for holders of other currencies, while US stock markets moved into positive territory.

However, sentiment in wider markets remained fragile due to a sharper inversion in the US Treasury yield curve, signalling a possible recession, and the lack of clarity on the US-China trade front, which kept interest for safe havens intact.

"I do not see this (drop in gold prices) lasting for long as traders seem to be trying to buy dips in the precious metals right now and with the yield curve and the US Federal Reserve`s (current stance), expect that dip to be bought up fairly quickly," said Bob Haberkorn, senior market strategist at RJO Futures.

Lower interest rates decrease the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion and weigh on the dollar, making gold cheaper for investors holding other currencies.

Federal funds futures implied traders saw a 91% chance of a 25-basis-point rate cut by the US central bank next month, and a 100-basis-point cut within 2020.
Markets also kept a close eye on Britain`s planned exit from the European Union, with concerns of a hard Brexit heightened after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he will suspend parliament for more than a month before Brexit.

Elsewhere, spot silver rose 1.2% to $18.38 per ounce, hitting its highest level since April 2017.

"There is not much at present to suggest that the demand for gold and silver might abate," Commerzbank analysts wrote in a note.

Spot platinum rose 4.8% to $907 per ounce, its highest since April 22, while palladium fell 0.8% to $1,469.60 per ounce.