Investing.com - Gold prices were lower during North America's session on Tuesday, extending overnight losses as markets declared Democrat Hillary Clinton as the winner of her first U.S. presidential debate with Republican Donald Trump.
Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton appeared to have edged out her Republican opponent Donald Trump in the first presidential debate, based on analysts' take on the market reaction.
Online betting companies shortened the odds on a Clinton win in the wake of the Monday night debate, leaving her as the clear favorite among bettors.
Traders are mostly expecting Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton to win the presidency and have not factored in the implications of a victory for Donald Trump. The idea of Trump in the White House is a worrying one for some investors who balk at his populist, unpredictable style.
Recent polls have shown a tightening race with just around six weeks to go until the November 8 election. The next presidential debate is scheduled for October 9, with the third and final clash set for October 19.
Gold for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange declined $8.45, or 0.63%, to $1,335.65 a troy ounce by 8:35AM ET (12:35GMT). On Monday, prices inched up $2.40, or 0.18%.
The precious metal has been well supported in recent days after the Federal Reserve held off on raising interest rates and scaled back the number of rate hikes it expects next year.
Gold is sensitive to moves in U.S. rates, which lift the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets such as bullion. A gradual path to higher rates is seen as less of a threat to gold prices than a swift series of increases.
The Fed has policy meetings scheduled in early November and mid-December. Economists believe policymakers would avoid a rate hike in November in part because the meeting falls just days before the U.S. presidential election.
Markets are currently pricing in a 10% chance of a rate hike at November's meeting, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool. For December, odds stood at around 53%.
Investors will pay close attention to comments from a key Fed official later in the day for further hints on the timing of a U.S. rate hike. Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer is due to speak at 11:15AM ET (15:15GMT) at the Howard University Economic Convocation, in Washington DC.
Besides Fischer's speech, traders will focus on U.S. consumer confidence data for September due at 10:00AM ET (14:00GMT). There is also S&P/Case-Shiller home price data at 9:00AM ET (13:00GMT) as well as a preliminary report on service sector activity at 9:45AM ET (13:45GMT).
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback's value against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.3% at 95.50 early Tuesday, keeping distance from last week's lows of 94.94.