Gold prices steady as lower Treasury yields offset dollar strength
Add BT as a preferred sourceGOLD prices steadied on Tuesday (Apr 19), after getting within a stone's throw of the key US$2,000 per ounce level in the previous session, as lower US Treasury yields offset pressure from 2-year highs in the dollar.
Spot gold held its ground at US$1,977.61 per ounce, as of 12.13 am GMT. US gold futures eased 0.4 per cent to US$1,979.30.
On Monday, gold prices climbed to US$1,998.10 per ounce - their highest in more than a month - as the Ukraine crisis and inflation concerns lifted demand for bullion, before giving up most of those gains after the dollar and US 10-year Treasury yields firmed.
The dollar steadied near a two-year high hit in the previous session, as investors braced for multiple half a percentage-point rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve.
US inflation is "far too high", St Louis Federal Reserve Bank president James Bullard said on Monday as he repeated his case for increasing interest rates to 3.5 per cent by the end of the year to slow what are now 40-year-high inflation readings.
While bullion is considered a safe store of value during times of political and economic crises, as well as a hedge against inflation, a firmer dollar makes greenback-priced gold less attractive for other currency holders.
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Yields on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury note eased off their highest level since December 2018 reached on Monday, limiting losses in zero-yield gold.
Spot silver was steady at US$25.84 per ounce, platinum gained 0.3 per cent to US$1,012.86, and palladium dropped 0.1 per cent to US$2,436.03. REUTERS
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