Gold slips on US-China trade talk hopes; traders eye Fed policy

WASHINGTON: Gold prices retreated on Wednesday as optimism over potential US-China trade talks weakened demand for safe-haven assets, while investors braced for the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting later in the day.

Spot gold was down 1.2 per cent at $3,388.67 an ounce as of 0225 GMT. The metal had risen nearly 3 per cent in the previous session.

US gold futures fell 0.7 per cent to $3,397.70.

“Gold seems to be pulling back amid a broad-based “risk on” move across markets … this is a pro-cyclical configuration that might echo optimism amid clues that the US and China have started real trade negotiations,” said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive. GLOB/MKTS

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and chief trade negotiator Jamieson Greer will meet top Chinese economic official He Lifeng in Switzerland this weekend for talks.

Both countries imposed tit-for-tat tariffs on each other last month, triggering a trade war that fuelled fears of a global recession.

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said he and top administration officials will review potential trade deals over the next two weeks to decide which ones to accept.

The market’s focus will be on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting later in the day, where the US central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady.

The FOMC will remain vague to keep as much flexibility as possible as it tries to discern what this trade war will mean for growth and inflation, Spivak added.

Traders are expecting 80 basis points of rate cuts this year, starting in July.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks are also awaited for clues into the potential timing of future rate reductions.

Gold, traditionally seen as a hedge against economic and political uncertainties, thrives in a low-interest rate environment.

Spot silver eased 0.9 per cent to $32.93 an ounce, platinum fell 0.6 per cent to $979.07 and palladium lost 0.4 per cent to $970.28.

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