May 24 (Reuters) – Gold prices rose on Friday, but were headed for their first weekly fall in three as expectations for U.S. interest rate cuts began to fade following the hawkish tone adopted in the Federal Reserve’s latest minutes.
Spot gold rose 0.4% to $2,338.57 per ounce as of 1232 GMT. Bullion hit a record high of $2,449.89 on Monday, but has fallen about 5% since then.
U.S. gold futures were up 0.1% to $2,339.80.
“As the market starts to correct lower, unquestionably, you will find those who missed the rally jumping in on what they perceive to be an opportunity to participate,” said independent analyst Ross Norman.
The dollar index (.DXY), opens new tab edged lower, making greenback-priced bullion less expensive to overseas buyers.
Minutes from the Fed’s latest meeting showed a live debate among policymakers as to whether current rates are sufficiently restrictive to cool inflation.
While the policy response for now would “involve maintaining” interest rates at current levels, the minutes reflected discussions of possible hikes.
Higher interest rates make non-yielding gold a less appealing investment.
Traders’ bets signalled growing doubts that the Fed will cut rates more than once in 2024, currently pricing in about a 63% chance of a rate cut by November according to the CME FedWatch Tool, opens new tab.
Previous expectations were for a likely first rate cut in September.
“This shift drove an increase in Treasury yields and a stronger dollar, punishing the price of the non-yielding precious metal,” said Ricardo Evangelista, Senior Analyst at ActivTrades.
Spot silver rose 1.1% to $30.42. It hit a 11-year high on Monday.
Platinum edged 0.5% higher to $1,024.00 and palladium fell 0.79% to $961.68. All three metals were headed for weekly losses.
Gold holdings in SPDR Gold Trust fell 0.62% on Thursday, while holdings in iShares Silver Trust rose 0.20%.
Reporting by Daksh Grover and Kavya Balaraman in Bengaluru; editing by David Evans and Varun H K
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