Gold holds near record high as Fed minutes fuel rate-cut bets
Aug 22 (Reuters) -Gold hovered near all-time highs on Thursday as minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest meeting cemented expectations of a September interest rate cut, with traders now awaiting Chair Jerome Powell's speech for insights on rate outlook.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold XAU= was flat at $2,511.80 per ounce, as of 0030 GMT, trading below a record high of $2,531.60 hit on Tuesday.
* U.S. gold futures GCcv1 were also flat at $2,548.50.
* Minutes from the Fed's July 30-31 meeting showed that officials were strongly inclined toward a rate cut next month.
* Traders have fully priced in easing by the Fed at the September meeting, with a 62% chance of a 25 bps cut, according to CME FedWatch tool. A low interest rate environment tends to boost non-yielding bullion's appeal.
* The Fed minutes pave the way for the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium starting Thursday, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell set to speak on Friday.
* Additionally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics revised payrolls in the April 2023-March 2024 period to show a 0.5% reduction in jobs, equivalent to 818,000. This was at the higher-end of market estimates of up to one million fewer jobs.
* The market will now be looking for initial jobless claims data due at 1230 GMT.
* SPDR Gold Trust GLD, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.07% to 856.70 tonnes on Wednesday. GOL/ETF
* Elsewhere, Israel has not agreed to withdraw its troops from the Philadelphi corridor on the Egypt-Gaza border, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Wednesday.
* Spot silver XAG= edged 0.2% lower to $29.56 per ounce, platinum XPT= gained 0.4% to $967.25 and palladium XPD= fell 0.1% to $950.57.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0030 Japan JibunBK Mfg PMI Flash SA August
0030 Japan JibunBK Comp Op Flash SA August
0030 Japan JibunBK SVC PMI Flash SA August
0500 Japan Chain Store Sales YY July
0715 France HCOB Mfg Flash PMI August
0715 France HCOB Services Flash PMI August
0715 France HCOB Composite Flash PMI August
0730 Germany HCOB Composite Flash PMI August
0730 Germany HCOB Services Flash PMI August
0730 Germany HCOB Composite Flash PMI August
0800 EU HCOB Mfg Flash PMI August
0800 EU HCOB Services Flash PMI August
0800 EU HCOB Composite Flash PMI August
0830 UK Flash Composite PMI August
0830 UK Flash Manufacturing PMI August
0830 UK Flash Services PMI August
1230 US Initial Jobless Clm 17 August, w/e
1345 US S&P Global Mfg PMI Flash August
1345 US S&P Global Svcs PMI Flash August
1345 US S&P Global Comp Flash PMI August
1400 EU Consumer Confid. Flash August
1400 US Existing Home Sales July
Reporting by Daksh Grover in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips
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