Gold prices rise but dollar caps gains

Gold prices rose slightly on Tuesday morning, supported by simmering concerns over US inflation, though gains were capped by a firm dollar and expectations that the US Federal Reserve will announce a tapering of its bond purchases next month.

Spot gold rose 0.37 per cent to $1,759.80 per ounce at 9.15am UAE time.

In the UAE, the precious metal prices remained unchanged on Tuesday morning. The Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group data showed 24K trading at Dh212.75 per gram, 22K at Dh200.0, 21K at Dh190.75 and Dh18K at Dh163.5.

"Gold is relatively resilient and all arrows are pointing back to stagflation versus economic growth (debate)," said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

However, investors are reluctant to chase the move higher ahead of the minutes of the Fed's September meeting, he told Reuters.

Limiting gold's gains, the dollar hovered close to a one-year high touched last month amid surging energy prices and expectations the Fed would soon start normalising policy.

Gold is often viewed as an inflation hedge, but reduced central bank stimulus and interest rate hikes tend to push government bond yields up, translating into a higher opportunity cost for holding non-interest yielding bullion.

"Risks around slower growth against higher inflation still see a sustained strategic allocation to gold amid prevailing low rates backdrop," analysts at ANZ Research said in a note, adding they expect bullion prices to reach $1,850 before retreating through next year.

waheedabbas@khaleejtimes.com