Gold firms on Evergrande risks; pre-Fed jitters cap gains

GOLD rose on Monday as fears about the solvency of Chinese property group Evergrande sparked a flight to safehaven assets, but gains were capped by strength in the dollar ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting.

Spot gold rose 0.5% to $1,762.66 per ounce by 1753 GMT. US gold futures settled 0.8% higher at $1,765.40.

Investors are rushing to the safety of bonds as fears grow of a default by Evergrande, driving a drop in yields that is helping gold, said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategies at TD Securities.

Gold is considered as a hedge against inflation and currency debasement likely resulting from the widespread stimulus. —