Gold Range-bound on Firmer Dollar, US Debt Limit Uncertainty

Ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a workroom at Krastsvetmet precious metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk
Ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a workroom at Krastsvetmet precious metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk
TT

Gold Range-bound on Firmer Dollar, US Debt Limit Uncertainty

Ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a workroom at Krastsvetmet precious metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk
Ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a workroom at Krastsvetmet precious metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk

Gold prices were flat on Thursday as the dollar advanced to an over two-month high and sapped demand for the greenback-priced metal, while investors awaited further developments in the drawn-out debt ceiling negotiations in Washington.

Spot gold was flat at $1,957.09 per ounce by 0519 GMT. US gold futures fell 0.3% to $1,958.80.

Rival safe-haven dollar scaled to its highest since mid-March, making gold less attractive for overseas buyers, Reuters said.

Bullion has been attempting to recover from its previous sell-off, but a stronger dollar and higher US Treasury yields continue to keep the upside in check, which seems to override safe-haven flows around the US debt ceiling situation, said Yeap Jun Rong, a market analyst at IG.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday maintained early June as a debt ceiling default deadline and said she will update Congress shortly about government finances.

Negotiators for Democratic President Joe Biden and top congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy held what both sides called productive talks on Wednesday to try to reach a deal to raise the United States' $31.4 trillion debt ceiling and avoid a catastrophic default.

Investors also took stock of minutes of the May 2-3 Federal Reserve meeting that showed policy makers "generally agreed" last month that the need for further interest rate increases "had become less certain," with several saying the quarter-percentage-point hike they approved might be the last.

Investors will also scan US GDP estimates and initial jobless claims due at 1230 GMT for guidance on the economy's health.

Spot silver fell 0.2% to $23.03 per ounce, platinum eased 0.3% to $1,021.23, palladium edged 0.1% lower to $1,413.96.

"Platinum is regaining investor attention as fundamentals improve. South African mining challenges weigh on supply recovery this year, while demand is getting support from gold as well as the ongoing substitution away from palladium," ANZ said in a note.



Washington Urges Israel to Extend Cooperation with Palestinian Banks

A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
TT

Washington Urges Israel to Extend Cooperation with Palestinian Banks

A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)
A West Bank Jewish settlement is seen in the background, while a protestor waves a Palestinian flag during a protest against Israel's separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin in 2012. (AP)

The United States on Thursday called on Israel to extend its cooperation with Palestinian banks for another year, to avoid blocking vital transactions in the occupied West Bank.

"I am glad that Israel has allowed its banks to continue cooperating with Palestinian banks, but I remain convinced that a one-year extension of the waiver to facilitate this cooperation is needed," US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday, on the sidelines of a meeting of G20 finance ministers in Rio de Janeiro.

In May, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened to cut off a vital banking channel between Israel and the West Bank in response to three European countries recognizing the State of Palestine.

On June 30, however, Smotrich extended a waiver that allows cooperation between Israel's banking system and Palestinian banks in the occupied West Bank for four months, according to Israeli media, according to AFP.

The Times of Israel newspaper reported that the decision on the waiver was made at a cabinet meeting in a "move that saw Israel legalize several West Bank settlement outposts."

The waiver was due to expire at the end of June, and the extension permitted Israeli banks to process payments for salaries and services to the Palestinian Authority in shekels, averting a blow to a Palestinian economy already devastated by the war in Gaza.

The Israeli threat raised serious concerns in the United States, which said at the time it feared "a humanitarian crisis" if banking ties were cut.

According to Washington, these banking channels are key to nearly $8 billion of imports from Israel to the West Bank, including electricity, water, fuel and food.