Gold Down, as Consumer Confidence Rises

Gold prices fell on Wednesday morning in Asia, while the U.S dollar retreated marginally.

Gold Futures went down 0.28% to $1,788.35 by 11:08 PM ET (3:08 AM GMT). Reduced stimulus and interest rate hikes pushed government bond yields up, translating into a higher opportunity cost for holding bullion.

Upbeat corporate earnings and eased concerns about high inflation also dented bullions safe-haven appeal.

Tech giants Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Google owner Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Inc. both beat revenue expectations, while their equity gained globally.

“Traders see this relatively strong earnings and other companies taking advantage of low interest rates to invest in capital expenditure as positive momentum,” said Michael Ashley Schulman chief investment officer at Running Point Capital.

Also, U.S. consumer confidence rose in October as concerns about high inflation were offset by positive labor market prospects, suggesting economic growth was picking up.

Investors now await news from the meetings of Bank of Japan (BOJ) and European Central Bank (ECB), both due this Thursday.

The BOJ is set to maintain its massive stimulus program on Thursday and slash this years inflation forecast, which signals that it has no intention to follow crisis-mode policies, according to Reuters.

As for other precious metals, silver fell 0.8% to $23.95 per ounce. Platinum fell 0.7% and palladium went down 0.3%.

Source: Investing.com