Gold consolidates as traders brace for US inflation data on Wednesday

By Arundhati Sarkar

(Reuters) - Gold consolidated in a narrow range on Tuesday, buoyed by a softer dollar but held back as investors refrained from big bets until the release this week of U.S. inflation data expected to influence the pace of interest rate hikes.

Spot gold was little changed at $1,790.37 per ounce by 0900 GMT. U.S. gold futures rose 0.1% to $1,807.60.

Investors are likely to sit tight until the release of U.S. inflation data on Wednesday with prices likely to remain in a $1,765-$1,795 range, Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades, said.

Ahead of the U.S. consumer price report for July due at 1230 GMT on Wednesday, analysts polled by Reuters expect annual inflation to have eased to 8.7% from 9.1% in June. A strong labour market report on Friday had already ramped up bets for more steep rate hikes.

Ongoing global policy tightening has cast a doubt on gold's outlook as higher rates increase the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding bullion.

However, geopolitical tensions and recession fears have offered support to safe-haven gold, mitigating the impact of the Fed's aggressive tightening and the resulting rampant dollar, Evangelista added.

The dollar eased on the day, making gold a more attractive bet for overseas buyers. [US/][USD/]

"Investors understand that both the U.S. and global economies are facing significant challenges, but the emphasis will be on the question for how long higher rates will be a weight on the market," Clifford Bennett, chief economist at ACY Securities, said.

U.S. consumers' expectations on where inflation will be in a year and three years' time dropped sharply in July, a New York Federal Reserve survey showed on Monday.

Elsewhere, spot silver eased 0.1% to $20.62 per ounce, while platinum was little changed at $939.36.

Palladium fell 0.1% to $2,209.03.

 

(Reporting by Arundhati Sarkar and Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; editing by Barbara Lewis)