Gold holds steady

JOHANNESBURG. — Gold held steady yesterday as the dollar traded near three-week lows, after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reiterated that the central bank will be patient in hiking interest rates, while palladium hovered near $1,550 levels.

Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,327.26 per ounce as of 0741 GMT, while

US gold futures were flat at $1,329. The US unit against major currencies was at 96,117, after shedding 0.4 percent overnight to its lowest since February 5 at 95,948.

“Gold has found very good support at $1,300, especially after the Fed’s stance,” said Mark To, head of research at Wing Fung Precious Metals in Hong Kong.

“At this moment, people have very diverse views on the course of Fed. But it is patient and more data dependent, which is going to be good for gold. $1,300- $1,400 should be very reasonable price range for this year.”

During his testimony before the US Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, Powell reiterated that the Fed will remain “patient” in deciding on further interest rate hikes. “Expectations of positive news out of

US–China negotiations should see equity markets supported over the near-term and potentially weigh upon bullion,” MKS PAMP said in a note.

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will try to break a stalemate over North Korea’s nuclear weapons in their second summit, to be held in Hanoi later on Wednesday.