Gold Prices Drop Amid Anticipation of US Central Bank Meeting Minutes

Gold prices fell on Wednesday as attention shifted to the Federal Reserve’s meeting minutes in search of new indicators regarding the trajectory of monetary policy.

Spot gold dropped 0.3 percent to $4,150.23 per ounce by 01:45 GMT. US gold futures declined 0.2 percent to $4,177.60.

The minutes from the latest meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee are scheduled for release later today.

Frank Walbaum, a market analyst at Naga.com, said, “The yellow metal is likely to remain relatively stable with a slight downward bias.”

Walbaum added, “The meeting minutes will clarify the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy and the extent to which policymakers support further interest rate hikes, potentially reshaping expectations for upcoming rate increases. Moreover, any subsequent moves in long-term Treasury yields, the US dollar, or oil prices—driven by developments in the Middle East—would amplify this directional impact on gold.”

San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly said on Tuesday that she believes the need for further rate hikes largely depends on whether the shocks driving inflation higher will dissipate or continue to worsen.

Recent weak economic data have reduced expectations for an interest rate hike in October, although traders still see an 85 percent probability of a rate increase in December.

For other precious metals, spot silver fell 1 percent to $61.12, platinum rose 0.2 percent to $1,704.25, and palladium declined 0.3 percent to $1,168.20.