Gold moves little, dollar inches down in Asia

Gold futures moved little in Asian trade, not far from January 2017 lows, as the dollar index backed off 14-month highs, ahead of US consumer data later today.

As of 03:52 GMT, gold futures due in December barely inched up to $1,184.10 an ounce away from 20-month lows, while the dollar index slipped 0.08% to 96.57 against a basket of major rivals, away from 14-month highs. 

Now investors await the University of Michigan's highly-regarded consumer sentiment survey later today, expected to increase to 98.1 in August from 97.9. 

The dollar index has strengthened recently against major currencies, marking three consecutive weekly gains and weighing on dollar-denominated commodity futures, on prospects of two more Federal Reserve rate hikes this year.