• Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose Monday on uncertainty ahead of President Donald Trump' s address to Congress Tuesday helping to boost the metal' s appeal as a haven investment.
The most active gold contract for April delivery rose 0.5 U.S. dollars, or 0.04 percent, to settle at 1,258.80dollars per ounce.
• The precious metal was given support as traders are preparing for market volatility ahead of a speech by U.S. President Donald Trump before the U.S. Congress on Tuesday.
• Gold was given further support as a report released by the U.S. Department of Commerce showed durable goods orders increasing by 1.8 percent during the month of January, which was exactly in line with investors' expectations.
• Feb 28 Gold held steady on Tuesday, after falling from 3-1/2-month highs in the previous session, asinvestors awaited a speech by U.S. President Donald Trump later in the day for more clarity on his economic policy.
Spot gold was little changed at $1,252.15 per ounce at 0044 GMT. The metal hit its highest since Nov. 11 at$1,263.80 in the previous session.
• Analysts note weakness in goods that exclude transportation, as strength in aircraft manufacturing artificially propped up the durable goods measure. The same analysts note a 0.4 decrease in core capital goods, which gave support to gold.
• It is worth examining the chances for a Fed rate hike before the scheduled Trump speech on Tuesday, for reference later in the week. Investors believe the Fed may raise rates from 0.75 to 1.00 during the May FOMC meeting at the earliest.
• According to the CME Group' s Fedwatch tool, the current implied probability of a hike from 0.50 to at least 0.75 is at 35 percent at the March meeting and 55 percent for the May meeting.
• Silver for May delivery rose 1.1 cents, or 0.06 percent, to close at 18.417 dollars per ounce.
Reference: Xinhua, Reuters
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