Gold rises after recent losses, but hawkish Fed comments limit gains

By Ambar Warrick

Investing.com-- Gold prices rose on Tuesday, but remained pinned near two-week lows as hawkish signals from some Federal Reserve members supported the dollar, while platinum prices surged on expectations of a potential supply deficit next year.

Metal markets fell in tandem with other asset classes on Monday as investors fretted over a potential global recession stemming from higher interest rates, while fears of more COVID-linked restrictions also dented sentiment. But this opened up metals to some bargain buying.

Spot gold rose 0.3% to $1,740.98 an ounce, while gold futures rose 0.1% to $1,742.25 an ounce by 20:25 ET (01:25 GMT). Both instruments sank about 0.8% on Monday.

San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly said on Monday that there was more work to be done in order to tighten monetary policy and cool inflation, and that the real-world impact of recent rate hikes will probably be greater than what the short-term target rate implies.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said she supports a smaller rate hike in December, which is in line with market expectations for a 50 basis point bps hike.

But both Fed chiefs said that future hikes will be largely dependent on U.S. economic readings, particularly the path of inflation.

Metal markets were hit particularly hard by a series of sharp interest rate hikes this year, as the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets increased.

Gold sharply pared its annual losses in recent weeks as markets positioned for a smaller rate hike in December. But given that inflation is still well above the Fed’s 2% target, markets are also considering the possibility that the central bank will keep raising rates for much longer than expected.

Such a scenario is bearish for gold and broader metal markets. Focus this week is on the minutes of the Fed’s November meeting, due on Thursday, for more cues on U.S. monetary policy.

Platinum futures surged nearly 1% after the World Platinum Investment Council said on Tuesday that it expects a deficit of the metal in 2023, following a hefty surplus this year.

The precious metal is used in a variety of applications, including vehicle exhausts, industrial purposes, and jewelry.

Among industrial metals, copper prices surged on Tuesday after logging steep losses in recent sessions.

Copper futures rose 0.8% to $3.6075 a pound, after tumbling 1.7% on Monday. The outlook for the red metal has been severely crimped by new COVID lockdowns in China, which is expected to weigh on demand.