Gold and silver futures pulled back on Tuesday, as traders are awaiting the U.S. economic data later today for further signals on the economy strength and future monetary policies.
Gold futures are expected to find support and resistance at levels $1,298.10 and $1,325.50 respectively, which are the low of July 17 and the high of July 18. The yellow metal ticked up on July 23rd due to the expectations that conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine may boost demand for gold as a safe-haven asset.
According to the Excon Fuji Securities, gold for August delivery dropped 0.24%, or $3.10, and traded at $1,309.40 a troy ounce, with the prices held almost steady ranging tightly between $1,305.60 and $1,311.60 an ounce.
Analysts expect that the loose monetary policies which supported gold since the Great Recession in the U.S. are about to end.
Markets expect that Federal Reserve Bank will end the bond-buying program around October and raise interest rates in 2015.
On the economic data front, the core inflation rate in June increased by 0.1% from May, below market expectations for 0.2%, however, markets considered the number as fundamentally healthy. It is worth mentioning that Fed considers core prices as a better gauge of inflationary pressure on long-term basis as they exclude the high-volatile food and energy prices.
On the other hand, silver for September delivery declined 0.02% to $21.008 a troy ounce, while copper futures for September delivery increased 0.29% at $3.208 a pound.
