Aug 20 (Reuters) - Gold prices held steady on Tuesday after
posting their biggest daily decline in a month in the previous
session, plummeting below a key psychological level of $1,500 an
ounce.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= edged up 0.1% at $1,496.80 per ounce at
0050 GMT.
* On Monday, gold skidded 1.2% to reach $1,495 an ounce,
below the key level of $1,500. This marked its biggest daily
decline since July 19.
* U.S. gold futures GCcv1 fell 0.4% to $1,505.90 an ounce.
* Asian stocks got off to a bright start after Wall Street
rallied on Monday, with the S&P 500 .SPX gaining 1.21%.
MKTS/GLOB
* Market sentiment is likely to remain positive as bond
yields are rising globally and the U.S. Treasury yield curve is
no longer flashing signs of a recession. USD/
* The focus shifts to U.S. Federal Reserve meeting minutes
due on Wednesday. Traders will also watch the Fed's Jackson Hole
seminar and a Group of Seven summit this weekend for clues on
what additional steps policymakers will take to bolster growth.
* Traders see about an 86% percent chance of a 25
basis-point cut in September. FEDWATCH
* Senior White House officials are discussing a temporary
payroll tax cut to boost the economy, the Washington Post
reported on Monday. * Hopes for more stimulus are rising after reports that
Germany is prepared to increase fiscal spending, and after the
China's central bank unveiled a key interest rate reform to
lower corporate borrowing costs and support a slowing economy.
* The U.S. dollar held near a three-week high on Tuesday, as
expectations of fresh global stimulus, and an improvement in
appetite for riskier assets lifted yields on U.S. government
bonds. USD/
* Refinitiv data shows an Iranian tanker that was detained
in Gibraltar is now on its way to Greece, but the U.S. State
Department has warned that any assistance to the vessel could be
considered as providing support to a U.S.-designated terrorist
organisation.