Gold edges higher at start of busy week

Gold prices edged higher on Monday, as market players looked ahead to a busy week of economic data, including monthly inflation indicators, for further clues on how fast the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year.

Comex gold futures were up around $8.00, or 0.6%, at $1,323.50 a troy ounce by 3:55AM ET (0855GMT).

Gold futures declined on Friday to suffer from their largest weekly loss in two months, as the dollar index and Treasury yields gained, dulling investment demand for the precious metal.

Gold is highly sensitive to rising U.S. interest rates, as these increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion while boosting the dollar, in which it is priced.

A stronger U.S. dollar usually weighs on gold, as it dampens the metal’s appeal as an alternative asset and makes dollar-priced commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies.

Besides the inflation report, this week’s calendar also features U.S. data on retail sales, producer prices, building permits, housing starts, industrial production, weekly jobless claims, consumer sentiment, as well as surveys on manufacturing conditions in the Philadelphia and New York regions.

The Fed held interest rates unchanged last month and raised its inflation outlook, signaling that borrowing costs will continue to climb under new central bank chief Jerome Powell. Traders are currently putting the chances of a 25-basis-point hike by the Fed at its March meeting at around 76%, according to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor Tool.

Commodity report courtesy investing.com