Gold Eases as Dollar Firms; Focus on Fed Minutes

A view of smelted gold bars at a smelting facility in Accra, Ghana August 22, 2024. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko
A view of smelted gold bars at a smelting facility in Accra, Ghana August 22, 2024. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko
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Gold Eases as Dollar Firms; Focus on Fed Minutes

A view of smelted gold bars at a smelting facility in Accra, Ghana August 22, 2024. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko
A view of smelted gold bars at a smelting facility in Accra, Ghana August 22, 2024. REUTERS/Francis Kokoroko

Gold prices edged lower on Tuesday, pressured by a stronger dollar, while investors awaited minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting and more economic data for insights on the US interest rate outlook.
Spot gold fell 0.3% to $2,634.69 per ounce by 0728 GMT. US gold futures lost 0.5% to $2,653.90, Reuters reported.

The dollar index hovered near a seven-week high, making bullion more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Gold has lost some momentum due to the rising dollar and bond yields, but downside risks may be limited by global conflicts that favor safe-haven assets, said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel's third-largest city, Haifa, while Israel appeared ready to expand its offensive into Lebanon, marking one year since the Hamas attack that ignited the Gaza war.
Bullion is considered a safe investment during times of political uncertainty.
Investors are focused on the minutes of the Fed's latest policy meeting, due on Wednesday, followed by the US Consumer Price Index on Thursday and the Producer Price Index data on Friday. Several Fed officials are also lined up to speak throughout the week.
"Looking ahead, if we see any upside surprises in the US CPI numbers this week, this could further boost the dollar and pressure gold," Waterer said.
According to the CME FedWatch tool, markets are no longer pricing in a 50-basis-point reduction at the Fed's November meeting after last week's strong jobs report. They now see an 88% chance for a 25-bp cut.
Meanwhile, St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem expressed support for more rate cuts, emphasizing that the economy's performance will guide policy.
Spot silver lost 2.02% to $31.08 per ounce. Platinum was down 1% to $962.90 and palladium fell nearly 3% to $994.00.
Elsewhere, China said it was "fully confident" of meeting its economic targets, but refrained from introducing stronger fiscal steps to get the economy back on track.



UAE Cabinet Approves 12% Spending Increase in 2025 Budget

A general view of Abu Dhabi, UAE. (WAM)
A general view of Abu Dhabi, UAE. (WAM)
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UAE Cabinet Approves 12% Spending Increase in 2025 Budget

A general view of Abu Dhabi, UAE. (WAM)
A general view of Abu Dhabi, UAE. (WAM)

The United Arab Emirates' cabinet has approved a balanced budget for the 2025 fiscal year with expenditures rising to 71.5 billion dirhams ($19.47 billion), state news agency WAM said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Gulf state, one of the world's top oil exporters, projects an increase in spending of almost 12% next year from 2024 estimates, but still expects a balanced budget in 2025, since revenue is also budgeted at 71.5 billion dirhams, according to the statement.

The approved annual budget is part of the UAE's multi-year financial plan for the years 2022-2026. The country approved a$52.3 billion budget for 2024-26 last October.

The UAE is a federation of seven emirates, all of which can set individual budgets, in addition to a federal budget. A large focus of the federal budget is on social and welfare spending.

Almost 40% of the 2025 budget will be allocated to social development and pensions, with education accounting for the majority of spending in that sector, followed by healthcare.

More than 35% of the spending is for government affairs, with much smaller allocations for the Infrastructure and Economic Affairs sector and for the Financial Investments sector, the statement said.