London — Gold was steady on Thursday after the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve policy meeting further dampened the expectation for an interest rate increase in March, lowering US bond yields and stalling upward momentum in the dollar.The dollar edged marginally higher against the euro on Thursday, but remained off the previous session’s one-week highs. Spot gold was flat at $1,237.61/oz at 11.20am GMT, while US gold futures rose 0.4% to $1,238.8. "The dollar’s backed off, bond yields have backed off, and that’s given a bit of support for gold," said Robin Bhar at Société Générale. A weaker dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of other currencies, while lower yields reduce the opportunity cost of holding nonyielding bullion. Higher interest rates would lift yields. Gold prices have traded within a range of around $1,220/oz-$1,240/oz since early February. Unease over the political outlook in the US and Europe has supported demand for bullion as a safe-haven asset, but the prosp...
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