Gold edges up, but stuck in tight range

Gold inched up on Tuesday on the back of a slightly weaker dollar, but traded in a tight range amid possibilities of an early announcement on the next U.S. Federal Reserve chair.

Spot gold was up 0.1 per cent at $1,282.80 an ounce by 0337 GMT, after hitting its lowest since Oct. 6 at $1,271.86 in the previous session.

U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 0.3 per cent to $1,284.60 per ounce.

"Nothing really spurring a big selloff for gold yet. We're waiting for currency direction... maybe people are anxious about an early announcement from Trump on the Fed chair," said a Hong Kong-based trader.

The dollar slipped against a basket of major currenciesand the yen , after climbing to a more than three-month high against the latter in the previous session, as attention turned to who would be the next Fed chairman.

President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday he is "very, very close" to making his decision on who should chair the Fed.

He is said to be considering Fed Governor Jerome Powell and Stanford University economist John Taylor for the position.

Current Chair Janet Yellen, whose term expires in February, was one of the five candidates Trump interviewed for the job.

A less hawkish candidate would be expected to favour lower interest rates, reducing the value of the dollar and making the greenback-denominated metal cheaper for holders of other currencies.

The Fed will raise interest rates in December and twice next year, according to a Reuters poll of economists showed, who now worry that the central bank will slow its tightening because of expectations that inflation will remain low.