Gold prices steady amid election uncertainty, Fed watch

Investing.com– Gold prices moved little in Asian trade on Tuesday, steadying after recent losses as anticipation of a tight U.S. presidential election and a Federal Reserve meeting kept traders on edge.

The yellow metal was hit with some profit taking last week, especially after data showed signs of resilience in the U.S. economy, denting bets on deeper interest rate cuts by the Fed.

But bullion still remained in sight of record highs hit in October, with any increased political uncertainty likely to drive renewed safe haven demand. 

Spot gold was flat at $2,736.26 an ounce, while gold futures expiring in December steadied at $2,744.95 an ounce by 23:27 ET (04:27 GMT). 

Gold steady with presidential elections in focus 

Spot gold prices still remained close to a record high of $2,790.41 an ounce hit in October, as safe haven demand for the yellow metal remained in play despite recent losses.

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are headed for a tight presidential election, recent polls showed, with focus chiefly on the seven battleground states that are likely to determine the course of the election. 

Voting is set to begin later on Tuesday. 

Fed meeting awaited for more rate cut cues 

Gold and broader metal prices were pressured by some resilience in the dollar, as the greenback steadied from recent losses as focus also turned to a Federal Reserve meeting this week.

The Fed is widely expected to cut rates by 25 basis points, a smaller cut than the 50 bps seen in September. But its outlook on future cuts will be closely watched, especially as recent data showed strength in the U.S. economy and sticky inflation. 

But nonfarm payrolls data from Friday also showed some cooling in the labor market- a trend that gives the Fed more impetus to keep cutting rates. 

Lower rates bode well for metal markets, given that they reduce the opportunity cost of investing in non-yielding assets. 

Among other precious metals, platinum futures steadied at $991.65 an ounce, while silver futures were flat at $32.595 an ounce.

Among industrial metals, benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.7% to $9,748.50 a ton, while December copper futures rose 0.8% to $4.4663 a pound.

The red metal was buoyed by anticipation of more cues on stimulus in top copper importer China, as the National People’s Committee kicked off a four-day meeting on Monday.

The NPC is widely expected to outline plans for increased fiscal stimulus.