Gold is set to gain in London amid speculation Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke will hint at additional monetary easing when he delivers testimony today. An unexpected drop in U.S. retail sales yesterday rekindled speculation the Fed will introduce further steps to shore up the economy. The International Monetary Fund cut its 2013 global growth forecast as Europe’s debt crisis prolongs Spain’s recession and said a U.S. rebound is moderating. “Many market participants expect the U.S. central bank to initiate another round of quantitative easing given that the momentum of the U.S. economic recovery has been slowing,� Andrey Kryuchenkov, an analyst at VTB Capital in London, wrote today in a report. Still, “investor interest in gold is far from overwhelming despite ongoing macro uncertainty.� Bullion for immediate delivery rose 0.3 percent to $1,594.25 an ounce by 11:10 a.m. in London. Prices are up 2 percent this year. August-delivery futures rose 0.2 percent to $1,594.70 on the Comex in New York. Gold at the morning “fixing,� used by some mining companies to sell output, increased to $1,595 in London from $1,589.75 yesterday afternoon. Bernanke will deliver his semiannual report on the economy and monetary policy to the Senate Banking Committee today. He will testify to the House Financial Services Committee tomorrow. Bernanke said on June 20 that policy makers will be prepared to take additional steps if necessary, including more asset purchases. Fed Bank of Kansas City President Esther George said in a speech yesterday the U.S. economy probably won’t grow much faster than 2 percent this year, due to caution among consumers and businesses. Silver for immediate delivery rose 0.7 percent to $27.5325 an ounce. Palladium gained 1 percent to $583.30 an ounce. Platinum was up 0.5 percent at $1,425.25 an ounce. To contact the reporter on this story: Nicholas Larkin in London at nlarkin1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net

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