Gold slips after Russia-Ukraine talks

Bengaluru — Gold prices edged lower on Tuesday after Russian and Ukrainian officials held the first round of ceasefire talks overnight, dampening demand for the safe-haven bullion.

Spot gold was down 0.1% to $1,905.37/oz by 5.23am GMT, after a more than 1% gain in the previous session. US gold futures rose 0.3% to $1,906.80.

High-level talks between Kyiv and Moscow ended with no agreement except to keep talking, but Asian markets stabilised on the sign of no immediate escalation of sanctions.

Oanda senior analyst Jeffrey Halley said there was a swing in risk sentiment during the New York session, which reversed much of the Ukraine panic seen on Monday in Asia and Europe trade after sanctions were ramped up on Russia at the weekend.

"Investors are, for now, less concerned that the Ukraine war will lead to a double-dip recession, [and] that has seen a rush back into equities at the expense of havens like gold," he said, adding that sentiment was also boosted by better-than-expected China data.

China’s factory activity expanded slightly in February as new orders improved, pointing to some resilience in the world’s second-largest economy.

Gold, often used a safe-store of value during times of political and financial uncertainty, had risen about 6.5% in February, having soared to an 18-month high of $1,973.96 last week.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is seen as a gamechanger and demand for safe-haven assets is expected to remain stable.

Spot gold may test a support at $1,886/oz, a break below which could cause a fall towards $1,865, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

Autocatalyst metal palladium shed 0.1% to $2,486.45, after reaching its highest level since July 2021 at $2,711.18 last week. Spot silver fell 0.4% to $24.31/oz, while platinum was flat at $1,043.64.

Reuters