GOLD prices fell on Tuesday as a slight rise in oil prices and hawkish signals from Federal Reserve policymakers reinforced market expectations interest rates will stay higher for longer.
Spot gold was down 1.1% at $4,295.62 per ounce by 0832 GMT. US gold futures fell 1.2% to $4,332.
"Treasury yields and oil prices have ticked up overnight, putting pressure on non-yielding assets like gold," said Jamie Dutta, a market analyst at trading platform Nemo.money.
"Tighter monetary policy is a headwind for gold, which means more than one Fed rate hike by year end will likely hurt the precious metal."
The Fed raised its policy rate by 25 basis points last week and Chairman Kevin Warsh flagged more hikes in the coming months.
Fed policymakers such as St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem and Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee continued to signal the need for further rate hikes to lower inflation stemming from strong demand and rising energy prices.
Traders see a 92% chance of a rate hike in December, compared to 80% last week, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
Bullion is traditionally viewed as a hedge against inflation and geopolitical risks, but its appeal tends to wane in a high-interest-rate environment as investors favour yield-bearing assets.
As tensions remained high in the Middle East, Houthi fighters pushed to seize strategic heights in Yemen to cut off the Red Sea coast from remaining areas held by Saudi-backed forces, after a report that US President Donald Trump had called off American strikes on the group at the last minute.
Oil prices gained for the first time in five sessions as investors awaited developments on possible US-Iran talks at the United Nations General Assembly this week, while a firm dollar made dollar-priced bullion more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Spot silver fell 2% to $64.68, platinum lost 1.5% to $1,770.19 and palladium declined 1.4% to $1,283.40. - Reuters
