Gold Prices Fall On Higher Dollar, Set For Biggest Weekly Drop In A Month

Gold fell on Friday, as a higher dollar and rising US Treasury yields weighed on demand for greenback-priced bullion, and put prices on track for their biggest weekly drop since mid-May.

Spot gold dropped 0.7 per cent to $1,844.25 per ounce. US gold futures dipped 0.2 per cent to $1,846.90.

Gold prices have fallen about 1.5 per cent in what has been a volatile week, after starting it near a one-month peak before hitting a four-week low on Tuesday.

"We haven't really moved a whole lot. We're still kind of stuck in this $1,800 to $1,880-90 range looking for direction", and gold needs clarity on the impact of rates, said Ilya Spivak, a currency strategist at DailyFX.

"That clarity will either have investors say - yes, I think inflation is going to be contained - gold lower, or no - I don't think inflation is going to be contained, I want an alternative store of value - gold higher," the strategist said.

World stocks headed for their worst week since a market meltdown in the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020, as investors feared sharp rate hikes tipping economies into recession. 

The U.S. Federal Reserve announced its biggest interest rate hike since 1994 this week, as it scrambles to rein in soaring inflation. Rising rates in the United States increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding gold.

"Going forward, we expect dollar strength and recovering bond yields to cap gold prices", as the Fed delivers on its hawkish stance, Fitch Solutions said in a note. 

"However, prices will not collapse back to pre-COVID-19 levels as gold will remain supported by the evolving Russia-Ukraine war, rising global inflation, and the still persisting pandemic."

Spot silver fell 0.6 per cent to $21.79 per ounce, and platinum dipped 0.5 per cent to $945.50, while palladium rose 0.8 per cent to $1,893.87. All were headed for weekly declines.