Bengaluru — Gold prices bounced back on Tuesday, ahead of Wednesday’s release of minutes of the US Federal Reserve’s last meeting. The minutes of that meeting — when it kept interest rates unchanged — could offer clues on the pace of the central bank’s interest rate hikes. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,279.67 an ounce by 4.39am GMT. The metal fell about 1.4% on Monday in its biggest one-day percentage drop since September 11. US gold futures for December delivery gained 0.3% to $1,279.30. "Given the fact that the December rate hike is almost a done deal, market watchers will look more closely at the Fed rhetoric for post-December," OCBC analyst Barnabas Gan said. Higher interest rates tend to boost the dollar and push bond yields up, putting pressure on gold prices by increasing the opportunity cost of holding nonyielding bullion. Fed chairwoman Janet Yellen said on Monday she would resign her seat on the Fed’s board of governors once Jerome Powell was confirmed and sworn in to replac...
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