· Gold steadied on Tuesday as robust U.S. manufacturing data lifted risk appetite and offset lingering doubts on U.S.-China trade, while scarce palladium retreated after its record run toward the $2,000 an ounce level.
· Spot gold was little changed at $1,476.23 per ounce by 01:32 p.m. ET (1832 GMT). U.S. gold futures settled mostly unchanged at $1,480.60.
· U.S. manufacturing output rebounded more than expected in November, the U.S. central bank said, keeping Wall Street near record levels.
· "The competition for gold today is equities ... but there is danger out there in the way central banks are behaving; gold has to reflect that. We've created an environment where we require central banks to move the economy forward," said Rob Lutts, chief investment officer at Cabot Wealth Management.
· While the United States and China claimed to have reached an initial trade agreement, many questions remain unanswered.
· The preliminary deal reached last week will double U.S. exports to China, White House adviser Larry Kudlow said on Monday. Washington will also reduce some tariffs on Chinese goods.
· U.S. officials have touted a deal, but Chinese officials have been more cautious, emphasizing the dispute has not been completely settled.
· "From a technical standpoint, gold is in a bull market. ... Trade deficits and negative interest rates across the globe have been good for gold," said Michael Matousek, head trader at U.S. Global Investors.
· Elsewhere, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, emboldened by election victory, put the risk of a hard Brexit back on the table, saying he would make extending the transition period beyond 2020 illegal.
· Gold is generally used by investors as a place to park assets during economic or political uncertainty.
· Spot palladium shed 1.7% to $1,944.60 per ounce, retreating from an all-time high of $1,998.43 earlier in the session.
· The metal, used to make catalytic converters for cars, could see a surge in demand owing to stringent anti-carbon emissions globally.
· "Supply is tight and when you're adding the speculation about a potential pick-up in demand due to recovery in the global economy, you have a perfect storm of bullish news continuing to keep palladium supported," Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen said.
· Last week's mine shutdowns in South Africa added fuel to palladium's rally.
· "It's times like these that create the opportunities to buy on pull backs," Matousek said.
· Platinum eased 0.3% to $926.73 an ounce and silver was down 0.1% at $17.01.
Reference: Reuters
Thai
Eng