By Zhang Mengying
Investing.com – Gold was down on Tuesday morning in Asia as the U.S. dollar weakened on softening inflation expectations.
Gold futures inched up 0.12% to $1,826.95 by 12:45 AM ET (4:45 AM GMT). The dollar, which normally moves inversely to gold, edged up on Wednesday morning. Softening inflation expectations prompted a reassessment of the prospects for aggressive interest rate hikes.
Benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yields steadied, keeping bullion gains in check.
As a way to tighten the sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, the U.S., UK, Japan, and Canada also plan to announce a ban on new gold imports from Russia during the G7 summit.
The European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde, U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, the Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester are due to speak at the ECB event this Wednesday.
U.S. core durable goods orders data which measures the total value of new orders for long-lasting manufactured goods increased 0.7% in May, pointing to sustained strength in business spending on equipment, but the rising interest rate could slow the momentum.
In the Asia Pacific, Hong Kong’s official data Monday showed that China’s net gold imports through Hong Kong rose 58.3% in May month-on-month as COVID-19 curbs eased in major cities.
In other precious metals, silver inched down 0.02%. Platinum inched up 0.01% while palladium climbed 0.94%.