The price of gold was tittle changed Wednesday morning as the US dollar continued to trade weak versus a basket of currencies.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs in a recent report set 3-month gold price target at $1,825 an ounce and said adverse impact of increasing taxes and prediction for an anemic US GDP growth are 2 factors which are bound to boost gold.
Gold for February delivery, the most actively traded contract, edged down $1.00 to $1,692 20 an ounce. Yesterday, gold settled higher with investors seeking the safe haven status of the precious metal on a weak dollar and some soft economic data out of the U.S. showing a drop in existing home sales. Investors also weighed the Bank of Japan’s move to ease its monetary policy.
Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, were unchanged at 1,332.61 tons.
Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar was lingering round its 11-month low versus the euro, while trading flat against sterling. The buck was hovering around its 30-month high versus the yen and ticking lower against the Swiss franc.
In economic news from the euro zone, Bank of England policymakers voted 8-1 to maintain the size of quantitative easing at GBP 375 billion, the minutes of the meeting showed Wednesday. David Miles sought an increase of GBP 25 billion to GBP 400 billion. The Monetary Policy Committee unanimously decided to retain the record low 0.50 percent interest rate.
The number of persons claiming jobless benefits in the UK declined unexpectedly in December, the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics showed The number of jobless claims or the claimant count declined by 12,100 from a month earlier to 1.56 million in December. Economists expected an increase of 500 claimants.
The prices of silver and platinum were ticking lower in morning deals.
From the U.S., the Federal House Finance Agency is scheduled to release the results of its house price survey for November at 9 a.m. ET. Economists estimate a 0.7 percent month-over-month increase in house prices following a 0.5 percent increase in October.
by RTT Staff Writer
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