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Gold slips from one-month peak on Sino-US trade talk hopes

May 16, 2019 00:00:00


BENGALURU, May 15 (Reuters): Gold prices steadied on Wednesday, having retreated from a one-month peak hit in the previous session as optimism surrounding trade talks between Washington and Beijing soothed investor concerns, boosting global stocks and the dollar.

Spot gold was steady at $1,296.49 an ounce by 0808 GMT. US gold futures edged 0.1 per cent higher to $1,297.20 an ounce.

"Gold is restrained as people are still interested in the dollar. The $1,300 level also looks like a good resistance," said Peter Fung, head of dealing at Wing Fung Precious Metals in Hong Kong.

The dollar held firm in early Asian trading, having been supported on Tuesday by US President Donald Trump downplaying the recent escalation in his trade war with China as "a little squabble" and insisting that talks between the two countries had not collapsed.

A stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for holders of non-US currency.

Simultaneously, Asian stocks also turned cautiously optimistic surrounding trade developments between the two countries on Wednesday, while still not completely discounting the possibilities of a protracted spat.


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