PRECIOUS-Gold steadies ahead of Fed's Jackson Hole symposium

By Anmol Choubey

Aug 19 (Reuters) - Gold held steady on Tuesday as investors awaited the Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole symposium later this week for cues into possible rate cuts and weighed Washington's efforts to end the war in Ukraine.

Spot gold XAU= edged 0.2% higher to $3,337.06 per ounce by 0411 GMT. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 for December delivery rose 0.1% to $3,380.70.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell's remarks at the Jackson Hole symposium through August 21-23 could offer clarity on the central bank's economic outlook and policy framework.

"Gold is still consolidating and is really waiting for a new catalyst to break higher. I think the big event to watch is Jackson Hole and whether the Fed brings the dovish guidance or not," said Kyle Rodda, Capital.com's financial market analyst.

Market participants currently see an 84% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut at the Fed's next meeting, per the CME FedWatch tool.

Gold typically performs well in a low-interest-rate environment and amid heightened uncertainties.

Minutes of the Fed's July meeting, due for release on Wednesday, are expected to provide additional cues into its policy.

On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy that Washington would help guarantee Ukraine's security in any potential deal to end Russia's war there.

Trump described his meeting with Zelenskiy as "very good" and said in a social media post that he had called Russian President Vladimir Putin and begun arranging a meeting between Putin and Zelenskiy.

Trump hosted Zelenskiy and a group of European allies days after he met with Putin in Alaska, which ended without an agreement.

UBS raised its gold price target for end-March 2026 by $100 to $3,600 on persistent U.S. macroeconomic risks, a decline in dollar use, and strong investment demand.

Elsewhere, spot silver XAG= fell 0.2% to $37.93 per ounce, platinum XPT= rose 0.4% to $1,328.20 and palladium XPD= lost 0.9% to $1,112.50.

Reuters Terminal users can see related news and prices by clicking on the codes in brackets:
All precious metals headlines           GOL
Precious metals market reports          GOL/
European gold prices                    GOLD/EU1GOLD/EU20#PREC
London Bullion Market Association       LBMA01
New York Comex gold 0#GC: and silver  0#SI:
New York platinum 0#PL: and palladium 0#PA: