Gold Price Forecast: XAU/USD posts modest gains above $2,600, focus on Trump policies

• Gold price holds positive ground to near $2,625 in Thursday’s early Asian session. 
• Geopolitical risks, central bank buying, and safe-haven flows might boost the Gold price. 
• The expectation of a slower pace of the Fed rate cut might cap the upside for the yellow metal. 

Gold price (XAU/USD) trades with mild gains to around $2,625 during the early Asian session on Thursday. The uncertainties around Donald Trump's tariff policies, geopolitical risks, and central bank buying support the yellow metal. Nonetheless, the cautious stance of the US Federal Reserve (Fed) might cap the Gold's upside. 

Traders awaited fresh catalysts that could influence the Fed's interest rate outlook this year. In December, Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled a cautious stance on further rate cuts after delivering a 25 basis points (bps) reduction. This, in turn, could provide some support to the Greenback and undermine the USD-denominated commodity price. 

The release of the US weekly Initial Jobless Claims on Thursday might offer some hints about the US labor market condition, On Friday, the US S&P Global Manufacturing PMI for December will be in the spotlight. 

On the other hand, the uncertainties surrounding policies from incoming President Donald Trump could lift the precious metal. Additionally, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict are expected to remain high this year, which could boost the safe-haven flows, benefiting the Gold price. 

An increase in global central banks gold demand might contribute to the precious metal metal’s upside. According to the World Gold Council survey, major central banks are likely to purchase more Gold in the next 12 months. This should further bolster demand for the yellow metal.