Precious-gold Steadies as Markets Weigh Us-iran Ceasefire Talks; Key Us Data Eyed

Gold prices held steady on Thursday, as investors stayed on the sidelines awaiting clearer signals on the U.S.–Iran ceasefire talks ahead of key U.S. inflation data later in the day.

FUNDAMENTALS

Spot gold XAU= was little changed at $4,715.42 per ounce by 0052 GMT. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for June delivery fell 0.8% to $4,739.20.

Israel pounded Lebanon with its heaviest strikes yet on Wednesday, killing hundreds of people and drawing a threat of retaliation from Iran, which suggested it would be "unreasonable" to proceed with talks to forge a permanent peace deal with the U.S.

The comments from Iran's lead negotiator and parliament speaker, Mohammed Bager Qalibaf, laid bare the persistent volatility in the region despite a ceasefire announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

Spot gold has declined more than 10% since the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran began on February 28, as higher energy prices fuelled inflation concerns and prompted investors to scale back rate-cut hopes.

Minutes from the Federal Reserve's March 17-18 meeting showed a growing number of policymakers felt rate hikes could be needed to rein in inflation that continued to exceed the central bank's 2% target, particularly in light of the Iran war.

Investors are now waiting for the Personal Consumption Expenditures data for February and the weekly jobless claims data due later in the day for additional clues on the Fed's policy path.

"Beyond near-term liquidity needs, we expect gold to continue to rebuild its gains in the coming months amid heightened geopolitical risk," Standard Chartered said on Wednesday.

Among other metals, spot silver XAG= fell 0.4% to $73.83 per ounce, platinum XPT= lost 0.2% to $2,025.75, while palladium XPD= firmed 0.3% to $1,559.29.