· Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,793.52 per ounce, as of 0657 GMT, after slipping 0.9% to its lowest since Nov. 5 on Tuesday. U.S. gold futures advanced 0.5% to $1,793.50.
· Platinum rose 1.3% to $981.86 and palladium gained 2% to $1,905.96.
· Spot silver fell 0.3% to $23.59 per ounce.
· Copper prices rise on easing woes over China demand, low stocks
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.3% to $9,737.50 a tonne by 0630 GMT.
The most-traded January copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was up 0.2% at 71,110 yuan ($11,131.29) a tonne.
Volumes were expected to be low heading into the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday.
· Robust dollar keeps gold below $1,800
Metal inches higher, but pressure comes from strong dollar and bets that the Fed may raise interest rates sooner than expected
· Dollar rests after surging on Powell's reappointment, kiwi weakens
The dollar paused on Wednesday after a surge that followed the reappointment of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, who was seen as the more hawkish choice, while the New Zealand dollar eased after a smaller than expected rate hike.
The euro held just above a 16-month trough at $1.1238, having found a measure of support from stronger-than-expected European business surveys. The yen sat just above a four-year low at 115.13 to the dollar.
The greenback had scaled a more-than-four-year high of 115.19 yen on Tuesday as two-year Treasury yields surged to their highest levels since March 2020 and Fed funds futures priced a chance of three rate hikes next year.
The U.S. dollar index traded flat at 96.533 after hitting a 2021 high of 96.612 on Tuesday. It is trading miles above 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
Sterling touched an 11-month low of $1.3344 against the rising dollar on Tuesday and steadied at $1.3380 on Wednesday. The risk-sensitive Australian dollar hovered at $0.7255 after falling to a seven-week low of $0.7207 overnight.
· Lira drops 3% near record low as Turkey stumbles into unknown
The metal has slumped 4.9% from last week’s five-month high on expectations that newly renominated Fed chair Jerome Powell could accelerate the pace at which the central bank normalises monetary policy amid surging consumer prices.
Those bets also helped strengthen the dollar index that steadied near its highest in 16 months on Wednesday, heaping pressure on bullion as it raises the metal’s cost to buyers holding other currencies.
“Although most of last week’s fast-money long positions are probably now closed out, gold is unlikely to stage a meaningful recovery above $1,800 unless US 30-year yields unwinds this week's gains,” Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at Oanda, said.
Halley expects any rally in gold to be capped at $1,810 in the near-term, with the narrative around higher inflation and interest rate rises propping up bond yields for the time being.
US 30-year treasury yields were not far from their highest level since late-October hit earlier in November.
Investors also took stock of data on Tuesday that showed British businesses reported strong growth in new orders this month alongside record cost pressures, boosting the chances for a Bank of England rate rise in December.
The World Platinum Investment Council expects a much larger global platinum market surplus this year than its earlier forecast.
· Overnight, yields on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes rose more than 5 basis points to as high as 1.684% while yields on 30-year Treasury bond gained 6 basis points. Two-year U.S. Treasury yields slipped having touched their highest level since March 2020 on Monday.
· Investors will be scrutinising the minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve policy committee's November meeting to be published later in the global day for signs that the pace of tapering could accelerate.
· Biden administration invites Taiwan to the Summit for Democracy, a move likely to anger China
· As U.S. inflation hits 31-year high, banks assess risks and opportunities
· China shows no signs of abandoning its zero-Covid strategy anytime soon, says Jefferies
· Euro zone November growth surprisingly strong but outlook darkens -PMI
Euro zone business growth unexpectedly accelerated this month but another wave of coronavirus infections and new restrictions, alongside price pressures, are likely to put a dent in December's expansion, a survey showed on Tuesday.
IHS Markit's Flash Composite Purchasing Managers' Index, a good indicator of overall economic health, jumped to 55.8 in November from 54.2 in October.
· BoE's Bailey says he might scale back policy guidance further
· Pakistan’s central bank predicts 5% growth for the economy despite inflation worries
· New Zealand says it plans to keep borders closed to most international travelers until April 30
· New Zealand hikes interest rates for second straight month as inflation risks grow
· Singapore's GDP growth to moderate next year after 2021 rebound
Singapore's economy is expected to grow about 7% in 2021, at the top of the official forecast range, and will expand at a slower pace next year as an uneven recovery continues across sectors, the government said on Wednesday.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) forecast the economy to grow 3% to 5% next year.
· Bank Indonesia to reduce liquidity in 2022, keep rates low until inflation rises
· Turkey may not be the only country facing a currency crisis, says investor Mark Mobius
· Oil mixed, investors sceptical about effectiveness of joint reserve release
Oil prices largely held gains Wednesday, with investors sceptical about the effectiveness of a U.S.-led coordinated release of stocks from strategic reserves and turning their focus to the next step by oil producers.
Brent crude futures slid 7 cents, or 0.1%, to $82.24 a barrel by 0432 GMT, having risen 3.3% on Tuesday.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 10 cents, or 0.1%, to $78.60 a barrel, following a 2.3% gain in the previous day.
Reference: Business Live, CNBC, Reuters
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