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Gold prices edged lower in Asian trade on Tuesday, as traders awaited crucial U.S. inflation data to gauge the Federal Reserve’s stance on potential interest rate cuts. Spot gold dipped 0.1% to $2,502.07 an ounce, while December gold futures also fell 0.1% to $2,531.0 an ounce. Despite the slight decline, gold remained close to recent highs, bolstered by safe-haven demand amid concerns over slowing global economic growth.
The focus for investors this week is the U.S. consumer price index (CPI) inflation data, due on Wednesday. Any indication of cooling inflation could strengthen expectations for the Fed to reduce interest rates in the coming months, a scenario that typically benefits gold by lowering the opportunity cost of holding the metal. The inflation reading comes just a week ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting, where a 25-basis point rate cut is widely anticipated.
Other precious metals followed gold’s decline, with platinum futures falling 0.1% to $945.0 an ounce and silver futures down 0.2% to $28.590 an ounce.
Copper Slips as Weak Chinese Trade Data Highlights Demand Concerns
In the industrial metals market, copper prices continued to retreat on Tuesday, pressured by weak Chinese trade data. Despite a surprise growth in China’s trade balance for August, the country’s copper imports fell 12.3% year-on-year, raising concerns about slowing demand in the world’s largest copper consumer.
The decline in imports, coupled with a series of weak economic indicators from China, has deepened worries over sluggish growth. This has contributed to copper’s steep losses over the past week, as traders remain cautious about the outlook for industrial metals.
