Gold held firm early Wednesday as the geopolitical tension from Ukraine and Gaza boosted the metal`s safe-haven appeal, halting losses seen in the previous session.
The economic calendar is quite light, putting the focus on geopolitical headlines from Gaza and Urkaine. Thus, investors are holding grounds again, seeking refuge rather than riding the risk wave.
However, tensions appear to be easing comapred to last week`s despite the lingering uncertainty in Eastern Europe and Middle east.
As of 03:59 a.m. ET, Spot Gold was up 0.21% at $1,309.20 an ounce. The metal traded in a rangbound of $1,305.16-$1,309.50 compared with the previous close at $1,307.33.
Among other precious metals:
- Spot Silver was nearly flat at $20.98 an ounce
- Spot Platinum was up 0.19% at $1,486.50 an ounce
- Spot Palladium was up 0.04% at $873.90 an ounce
On the political front, the European Union foreign ministers threatened of harsher sanctions against a range of Russian on Tuesday in response to the suspected downing of a Malaysia Airlines jetliner by Moscow-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine.
Weakness in the US dollar has also offered the price a floor on the heels of corporate results from Apple and Microsoft, while data released yesterday on inflation and housing market supported the Federal Reserve`s bullion-friendly monetary policy.
The USDIX hit a session low of 80.42 before picking up slightly to trade around 80.82 in the early part of the European session.
However, the dollar index is still trading near a five-week high of 80.83.