By Chris Oliver, MarketWatch
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — The price of gold was little changed late afternoon Wednesday in east Asia, with investors looking ahead to the minutes of U.S. central bank’s June policy meeting, due later Wednesday, for clues as to the prospects for further easing.
Attention was also focused on the Bank of Japan and whether it would unveil additional easing at the conclusion of its two-day policy board meeting Thursday.
Comex gold for August GCQ2 -0.29% delivery slipped 0.2%, or $2.50, to $1,577.40 per ounce.
In U.S. trade Tuesday, the August contract eased 0.6%, to end at $1,579.80 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, pressured by gains in the U.S. dollar and renewed concerns about the euro zone. See Market Snapshot .
Investors focused Wednesday on emerging dynamics in Japan, after a panel tasked with helping end the nation’s long bout with deflation called upon the Japanese government to work closely with the nation’s central bank to ensure a stable rise in prices and achieve nominal growth targets.
The panel, which presented its proposals Tuesday, also called for the government to take decisive measures against currency-market volatility. Some reports said the panel, in addressing the issue of the strong yen, endorsed a more decisive approach on intervention to weaken the Japanese currency.
In other metals trading, silver for September delivery SIU2 +0.44% was up 0.6%, or 16 U.S. cents, at $27.02 per ounce.
