Gold steady ahead of holidays; US Fed outlook weighs

GOLD prices held steady on Tuesday (Dec 24), with investors bracing for a less aggressive path of interest rate cuts from the US Federal Reserve next year, ahead of a shortened trading week due to the Christmas holiday.

Spot gold traded flat at US$2,614.87 per ounce, as at 0050 GMT. US gold futures steadied at US$2,628.90.

In a holiday-curtailed week, trading volumes are likely to thin out as the year-end approaches.

Front and centre for investors in 2025 is how rapidly or deeply the US central bank cuts rates. The Fed continued reductions in December after a period of aggressive rate hikes but signalled fewer cuts in 2025.

Higher rates dull non-yielding bullion’s appeal.

While a benign US inflation reading on Friday eased some concerns about the pace of cuts next year, markets are still pricing in just about 35 basis points worth of easing for 2025.

US investors are preparing for a swathe of changes in 2025, from tariffs and deregulation to tax policy, that will ripple through markets as president-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.

Gold scaled multiple record highs this year, rising 27 per cent so far to mark its best annual performance since 2010, driven by robust central bank buying, geopolitical tensions and monetary policy easing by major banks.

SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.39 per cent to 873.95 tonnes on Monday from 877.4 tonnes on Friday.

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Gold prices hold steady in thin trading

Spot silver added 0.1 per cent to US$29.66 per ounce, platinum rose 0.2 per cent to US$940.83 and palladium gained 0.2 per cent to US$931.36. REUTERS