Gold prices remained stable on Friday, but they were still on track for a weekly decline as investors waited for more information about a possible U.S. interest rate cut in September.
By early morning, spot gold slightly decreased by 0.2% to $2,421.31 per ounce, following a rise of more than 1% on Thursday. Despite this, gold was still set for its biggest weekly drop since early June, especially after a 3% fall on Monday due to a larger market selloff. U.S. gold futures also edged down by 0.1% to $2,460.80.
Tim Waterer, an analyst at KCM Trade, mentioned that gold prices were mostly stable on Friday as investors took a break after a very eventful week.
Federal Reserve officials are optimistic that lower inflation could lead to interest rate cuts in the future. These decisions will be based on economic data rather than just stock market movements. Waterer added that gold might benefit if investors become more cautious or if they expect the central bank to ease borrowing conditions, which could push gold prices to new highs.
Currently, there is a 55% chance that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by 50 basis points in September, with another cut likely in December.
In other precious metals, spot silver increased by 0.3% to $27.66 per ounce, and platinum rose by 0.7% to $937.65, though both were still heading for a weekly loss. Palladium went up by 0.8% to $930.08 and was up by 4.4% for the week.
Investors are now focused on next week’s reports on U.S. consumer prices (CPI) and producer prices (PPI) for more clues about the Federal Reserve’s future actions.