The US dollar held steadily on Tuesday against a basket of major currencies, ahead of key US inflation data, which provide cues on the chances of a near monetary policy tightening.

The dollar index held at 92.88 points as of 11:50 GMT, after opening at 92.88 points, and hit an intraday high at 92.66 points and a low at 92.49 points.

The greenback was nearly flat yesterday, after hitting a 3-week high at 92.88.

The Federal Reserve's survey to measure inflation expectations during August in the US jumped to the highest level since 2013.

As inflationary pressures mount on policymakers, bets for a policy tightening by the Federal Reserve before yearend mounts in a step that will lead to interest rate hikes later on.

Now investors await a variety of important US data on the inflation levels in the US during August, which would help determine the likely path of tightening the US monetary policy. 

At 12:30 GMT, the US consumer price index is expected up by 5.3% y/y in August from 5.4% in July, and the monthly reading is expected at 0.4% from 0.5%.

At 12:30 GMT, the US economy released its reading for the consumer price index, which rose by 0.3% in August, lower than forecasts of 0.4%, and lower than the previous reading of 0.5%. 

The core reading (excluding food and fuel prices) rose by 0.1%, lower than forecasts of 0.3%, and lower than the previous reading of 0.3%. This data is negative for the US dollar.

Oil prices continued to rise as the US market opened on Tuesday, rising for the third day in a row, and hit a 6-week high, amid concerns over the return of the US production in the Gulf of Mexico to its normal levels, especially as the new tropical storm Nicolas approaches the region, and ahead of preliminary data on the US crude inventories.

US crude rose 0.7% to the highest since August 3 at $71.12 a barrel, after opening at $70.61, and hit a low at $70.53, and Brent crude rose 0.8% to the highest since August 2 at $74.20 a barrel, after opening at $73.62, and hit a low at $73.51.

The US crude gained 1.5% yesterday, and Brent crude rose 1.1%, in the second straight gain, due to concerns about US supplies.

Producers in the US Gulf of Mexico have again begun evacuating workers from offshore platforms ahead of Tropical Storm Nicholas, which is expected to turn into a hurricane over the next few days.

Nearly 40% of production in the Gulf of Mexico remained idle as of today, two weeks after Hurricane Ida swept through the region, bringing strong winds and rains, disrupting about 95% of the region's production.

Royal Dutch Shell canceled some export shipments in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday due to damages to offshore facilities from Hurricane Ida.

The Gulf of Mexico encompasses 17% of the US total production, which was 11.5 million bpd before Hurricane Ida, and is currently around 11 million barrels per day.

The American Petroleum Institute will release its preliminary report on the US crude inventories later today, and the US Energy Information Administration will release the official data on Wednesday.

Gold prices fell on Tuesday, after taking a breather yesterday, ahead of key data releases in the US, which provide cues on the chances of a near monetary policy tightening.

Gold prices fell more than 0.3% to $1,787.48 an ounce, after opening at $1,793.49, and hit a high of $1,794.83.

Gold closed higher by 0.3% yesterday, after closing lower by 0.4% on Friday due to a rise in the US T-bonds.

Now investors await a variety of important US data on the inflation levels in the US during August, which would help determine the likely path of tightening the US monetary policy. 

At 12:30 GMT, the US consumer price index is expected up by 5.3% y/y in August from 5.4% in July, and the monthly reading is expected at 0.4% from 0.5%.

As inflationary pressures mount on policymakers, bets for a policy tightening by the Federal Reserve before yearend mounts in a step that will lead to interest rate hikes later on.

Gold stocks at the SPDR ETF rose 2.04 metric tonnes yesterday, the first daily increase since July 29, with the total at 1,000.21 metric tonnes.