Gold prices rise amid weaker dollar and heightened omicron fears

The gold prices They strengthened on Tuesday, as a fall in the dollar and the risks to global growth posed by the increase in cases of the omicron variant increased the attractiveness of the metal as a safe haven.

As of 10:17 GMT, spot gold was up 0.4% to $ 1,795.70 an ounce, while US gold futures were up 0.2% to $ 1,797.90.

While a lower dollar has helped gold, “Markets are still reluctant to raise spot prices significantly, knowing that Treasury bond yields could rise with the US Federal Reserve rate hikes looming next year.”Said Han Tan, chief market analyst at Exinity.

The dollar index recovered some of its losses during the session in Asia, but was trading slightly lower, making the bullion cheaper for buyers with other currencies.

“While the (recent) announcement of the phasing out of stimulus the Fed was slightly negative for gold, it has had some support due to concerns about the omicron variant.”Said Ajay Kedia, Head of Kedia Commodities in Mumbai.

Bullion is often seen as a hedge against sharp price rises, but interest rate hikes could curb inflationary pressures while reducing the attractiveness of non-interest-bearing gold.

European stocks were rebounding after a selloff in the previous session, but concerns about the omicron variant of the coronavirus still linger, amid tighter restrictions in Europe and elsewhere that threaten to sink the global economy ahead of the Year. New.

Among other precious metals, silver was up 1.8% to $ 22.64 an ounce, platinum was up 1.1% to $ 942.49 and palladium was up 4.4% to $ 1,825.50.

With information from Reuters