Oct 10 (Reuters) – Gold prices eased on Tuesday, after surging nearly 2% in the previous session, as investors cautiously returned to riskier assets and awaited further clues on the Federal Reserve’s policy stance.
Spot gold was down 0.1% at $1,858.64 an ounce by 13:44 ET (1744 GMT), having risen to a more than one-week high earlier in the session.
US gold futures were up 0.6% at $1,875.30 an ounce.
Spot gold surged 1.6% on Monday, its biggest one-day gain in five months, as military clashes between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas boosted safe-haven demand.
Profit-taking and increased investor risk appetite weighed on prices, although the conflict between Israel and Hamas limited gold’s losses, said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategies at TD Securities. Gold is often a safe haven for investors in times of global instability.
Wall Street’s main indexes opened higher, although caution prevailed amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Markets were focused on the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s September monetary policy meeting, due on Wednesday, and US consumer price index (CPI) data due on Thursday.
If the CPI report comes in hotter than expected, especially the core number, it will be negative for gold as it will indicate that the Fed will have to keep rates higher for longer,” Melek added.
