IV:Gold trades at 1-week low ahead of data, FOMC minutes
Investing.com - Gold futures were little changed near the previous session’s one-week low on Wednesday, as investors looked ahead to key U.S. economic data and the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s October meeting later in the day.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery traded at USD1,271.60 a troy ounce during European morning trade, down 0.15%.
Comex gold prices traded in a range between USD1,270.60 a troy ounce, the daily low and a session high of USD1,275.70 a troy ounce.
The December contract dropped to USD1,268.00 a troy ounce on Tuesday, the lowest since November 13, before recovering to end the session up 0.09% at USD1,273.50.
Gold futures were likely to find support at USD1,260.70 a troy ounce, the low from November 12 and resistance at USD1,293.60, the high from November 14.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke reiterated the central bank’s commitment to its highly accommodative monetary policy in comments made at the annual National Economists Club members dinner in Washington on Tuesday.
Bernanke said the Fed is likely to keep interest rates near zero until "perhaps well after" unemployment drops below 6.5%, the bank's threshold for increasing rates.
Bernanke added that a “preponderance of data” would be needed to begin removing accommodation.
Investors are now turning their attention to the minutes of the Fed’s October policy meeting later in the day for further indications on the future course of U.S. monetary policy.
Dovish comments by Fed Chairwoman nominee Janet Yellen last week were seen as supporting the view that the central bank will continue its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program well into the beginning of next year.
On Wednesday, the U.S. is to release a flurry of economic data, including reports on retail sales, consumer inflation, existing home sales and business inventories.
Gold prices are down approximately 24% this year on concerns the Fed would begin cutting back its easy-money policy by trimming its monthly bond purchasing program.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery inched up 0.1% to trade at USD20.35 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery added 0.4% to trade at USD3.170 a pound.
