Investing.com - Gold prices were little changed near the prior session's three-month highs during North American morning hours on Tuesday, as investors looked ahead to President Donald Trump's speech to Congress later.
Comex gold futures dipped 35 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $1,258.75 a troy ounce by 10:15AM ET (15:15GMT), staying within sight of the prior session's high of $1,264.90, a level not seen since November 10.
Spot gold was up $5.00 at $1,257.85 per ounce. The metal hit its highest since November at $1,263.95 on Monday.
Also on the Comex, silver futures for May delivery tacked on 3.0 cents, or 0.2%, to $18.45 a troy ounce after reaching $18.54 on Monday, the highest since November 11.
Trump will make his first major address to Congress on Tuesday at 9:00PM ET (02:00GMT Wednesday), with investors hoping he will shed light on his promises of tax reform and infrastructure spending.
Market players will also be eager to learn more about Trump's plans for repealing the Affordable Care Act and reducing regulations on businesses.
Meanwhile, U.S. data remained in focus as traders look for signals on interest rate hikes ahead of the central bank's March meeting.
U.S. consumer confidence increased to 114.8 in February from a reading of 111.6 in the preceding month, bolstering optimism over the outlook for the consumption-driven economy, the Conference Board said Tuesday.
A separate report showed that growth of the U.S. economy in the fourth quarter was left unrevised at 1.9%, missing forecasts for 2.1%, despite the fact that consumer spending increased more than expected.
A recent string of solid data reinforced the view that the U.S. economy is sufficiently robust to warrant higher interest rates in the months ahead.
Fed fund futures priced in about a 30% chance of a rate hike in March, according to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor Tool. Odds of a May increase was seen at 53%, while June odds were at around 73%.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down 0.3% at 100.85 in New York morning trade.
Treasury yields were little changed, with the U.S. 10-Year bond at around 2.356%.