Gold held steady as market awaits FED’s meeting

Gold prices were slightly changed on Tuesday, ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy meeting. Meanwhile, palladium stood below a record peak scaled in the previous session. Meanwhile, a firmer greenback weighed on gold’s appeal.

Spot gold was flat at $1,780.86 per ounce while U.S. gold futures were slightly changed at $1,780.70 per ounce.

The American currency increased which make gold less appeal for holders of other currency. Benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yield stood close to the 1.570% level.

Market participants are now looking at the U.S. Fed’s two-day policy meeting, which ends on April 28, As no major policy changes are anticipated, investors will pay close attention to Chairman Jerome Powell’s outlook on the economy.

The Fed slashed its benchmark overnight interest rate to near zero last March after the pandemic hit America and has promised to leave borrowing costs intact until the economy reaches full employment and inflation reaches 2%.

Over 147.23m people have been reported to be infected by the novel COVID-19 virus

New orders for key U.S.-made capital goods increased solidly in March, and shipments rose. It cemented anticipations that economic growth accelerated in the first quarter as massive government support and improving public health increased demand.

More than 147.23 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel COVID-19 virus globally, and 3,249,168​ have died.

The Bank of Japan kept its massive stimulus on Tuesday. It projected inflation missing its 2% target for years to come, while new restrictions to counter a surge in coronavirus infections clouded prospects of a fragile economic recovery.

Additionally, Palladium declined by 0.1% and traded at $2,924.67 per ounce after scaling a lifetime record of $2,941 on Monday.

According to ANZ analysts, increasing demand in the auto sector is expected to fuel strong demand for PGM (Platinum Group Metals)-rich catalytic converters amid increasing restrictions on emissions.

Among other precious metals, silver declined by 0.2% and traded at $26,17 per ounce, while Platinum dipped by 0.3% at $1,240.01.