Gold at one-week low as firm dollar, yields dominate mood

Gold languished near one-week lows on Wednesday on strength in the dollar and Treasury yields, driven by expectations for U.S. interest rates to stay elevated for longer and worries about China's economy.

Spot gold was flat at $1,926.30 per ounce by 1209 GMT, after hitting its lowest since Aug. 29 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures were little changed at $1,952.40.

"Fears of recession in the U.S. having constantly been pushed back as we see resilience in the activity data are giving a boost to the U.S. dollar," said Edward Gardner, commodities economist at Capital Economics.


The dollar held near a six-month peak, denting investor appetite for greenback-priced bullion, while benchmark 10-year Treasury yields were also close to Aug. 25 highs.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said on Tuesday the latest round of economic data was giving the U.S. central bank space to see if it needs to raise interest rates again.

"Waller's comments suggest that the Feds thinking has shifted and that they are worried about the downside risks of doing too much," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.

Markets were all but certain that the Fed will keep rates unchanged at its Sept. 19-20 meeting, but still bet on a 42% chance of a rate hike before 2024, according to CME FedWatch tool.

Higher U.S. interest rates and Treasury yields lift the opportunity cost of holding non-interest-bearing gold.

"A lot will also depend over the next few months on how China's economy holds up, in particular appetite for jewellery, which really goes hand in hand with consumer confidence," Gardner said.

China's services activity expanded at the slowest pace in eight months in August, as stimulus failed to meaningfully revive consumption.

Silver was down 0.4% to $23.43 per ounce, platinum fell 1.2% to $914.83 and palladium eased 0.5% to $1,205.55.