By Gina Lee
Investing.com – Gold was down on Tuesday morning in Asia, giving up its gains from earlier in the session.
Gold futures were up by 0.07% at $1,705.65 by 12:05 AM ET (5:05 AM GMT), with a second wave of COVID-19 cases infecting the safe-haven yellow metal.
Stocks, which usually move in the opposite direction to gold, were mixed, but mostly continued their retreat from Tuesday morning.
China and South Korea are scrambling to contain second wave outbreaks that spread over the weekend, with Chinese health authorities calling for vigilance on Tuesday to prevent an increase in numbers.
Meanwhile, Korea reported 26 new cases on May 12.
Investors are looking to Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech later in the day, amid rising speculation the U.S. could adopt negative interest rates.
Should Powell announce more stimulus measures, they would support gold as it is used as hedge against both inflation and currency debasement.
The dollar was also up in anticipation of Powell's speech.