Gold muted as traders await US jobs data, monitor Mideast tensions

Business Recorder reported that spot gold slipped 0.3% to $4,437.10 an ounce early on Tuesday, having fallen to a level not seen since August 19 in the prior session. Traders were weighing Middle East tensions while they waited for major US jobs figures scheduled this week. Futures on the metal in America, by comparison, climbed 0.1% to $4,485.30.

The metal had reached its highest point in over three months last week, but it fell more than 3% on Friday after Chair Kevin Warsh suggested the Fed would still need to act unless policymakers gained confidence that inflation was falling toward 2%. IG market analyst Tony Sycamore linked the pressure to Warsh's hawkish Jackson Hole remarks and renewed Strait of Hormuz tensions, which had pushed oil prices higher and raised inflation expectations. Traders currently price a 66% chance of a US rate hike in September and 89% in December, per the CME FedWatch Tool.

Higher rates generally weigh on bullion because they make yield-bearing assets more appealing, even though gold is often viewed as a hedge against inflation. President Donald Trump said he has great respect for Warsh and that the chair would do what the situation requires on rates. On Monday, Trump threatened additional strikes on Iran after direct hostilities resumed for the first time in a month, and crude prices moved higher for a second session running. Among other metals, spot silver gained 0.3% to $66.34 an ounce.