Gold under pressure from higher US inflation

Gold prices fell in European trade on Wednesday on track for the second loss in a row off record highs amid active profit-taking, while the dollar rebound after surprise US inflation data. 

Such numbers showed that inflationary pressures are still ongoing on the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy, in turn hurting the odds of a Fed interest rate cut in June.

Gold Prices Today

Gold prices fell 0.15% to $2155 an ounce, with a session-high at $2161, after losing 1.15% on Tuesday, the first loss in 10 days on profit-taking off record highs at $2195. 

The Dollar 

The dollar index rose 0.1% on Wednesday on track for the third straight session against a basket of major rivals, in turn pressuring gold and other greenback-denominated metal prices. 

The dollar was boosted by recent inflation data which proved resilient and stubborn. 

US Inflation Data

US consumer prices rose 3.2% y/y in February, above estimates of 3.1%, while core prices, excluding food and energy, rose 3.8% in February, above estimates of 3.7%. 

US Rates

After the data, the odds of a Fed interest rate cut in May fell to 12%, while the odds of such a cut in June fell to 67%. 

The SPDR

Gold holdings at the SPDR Gold Trust remained flat yesterday at 815.13 tonnes, the lowest since July 2019.