Gold Treads Water Near Four-Month High Amid Fed Inflation View

(Bloomberg) -- Gold continued to hover near the highest in more than four months as investors weighed comments by Federal Reserve officials who tried to soothe concerns about inflation.

The metal was slightly higher on Tuesday as the dollar sank to the lowest since January amid broadly improved sentiment in markets. Talking about inflation, Fed officials Lael Brainard, Raphael Bostic and James Bullard said price gains seen as the economy reopens should prove temporary.

Gold is close to erasing this year’s decline as investors turn more bullish on the metal, with holdings in bullion-backed exchange-traded funds rising in recent weeks. While market-based measures of inflation expectations have eased lately, traders remain cautious about price pressures, which if sustained could push central bankers to tighten monetary policy.

“Inflation expectations will need to pick up further before we hear any more hawkish tones from the U.S. Fed’s decision-making body,” Daniel Briesemann, an analyst at Commerzbank AG, wrote in a note. “Gold should benefit from this -- both directly and indirectly via the weak U.S. dollar, which is hardly likely to appreciate noticeably against this backdrop.”

Spot gold edged up 0.1% to $1,883.10 an ounce by 1:21 p.m. in London. Prices climbed to $1,890.13 last week, the highest since Jan. 8. Silver declined, while palladium and platinum rose. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index edged lower, touching the lowest since early January.

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