Gold prices climbed more than 2% on Wednesday, building on their best day since 2008 in the previous session, ‍as bargain-hunting and ‍a softer dollar supported bullion.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was up 2.2% at $5,044.74 per ​ounce, as of 0112 GMT, after gaining 5.9% on Tuesday, its biggest daily gain since November ⁠2008. Bullion scaled a record high of $5,594.82 last Thursday.

* U.S. gold futures for April delivery climbed ⁠2.7% to $5,067.0 per ‌ounce.

* The dollar fell against most major currencies except the yen on Tuesday, as traders consolidated recent gains fuelled by upbeat U.S. data and ⁠expectations of a less-dovish Federal Reserve.

* A weaker dollar makes greenback-priced bullion more affordable for holders of other currencies.

* U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a spending deal into law that ends a partial U.S. government shutdown.

* The closely watched ⁠employment report for January will ​not be released this Friday because of the partial shutdown.

* Investors are ramping up bets on higher long-dated Treasury ‍yields and a steeper yield curve as incoming Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is expected to press ​for interest rate cuts while shrinking the U.S. central bank's balance sheet.

* Investors expect at least two Fed interest rate cuts in 2026 and await ADP private payroll data later in the day for more cues into the Fed's policy path. Non-yielding bullion tends to perform better in low-interest-rate environments.

* The current wave is expected to be sharp, probably to surge into the $4,950 to $5,198 range, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said.

* Spot silver rose 2.1% to $86.92 an ounce. It touched a record high of $121.64 on Thursday.

* Spot platinum ⁠added 2.3% to $2,260.50 per ounce after hitting an all-time high ‌of $2,918.80 on January 26, while palladium gained nearly 3% at $1,782.85.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0145 China Ratingdog Services PMI January 0850 France HCOB Composite, Services PMI January 0855 Germany HCOB Services PMI January 0855 Germany HCOB Composite Final PMI January 0900 EU HCOB Services, COmposite Final PMI January 0930 UK S&P Global PMI: Composite - ‌Output January 0930 UK Reserve Assets ⁠Total January 1000 EU HCIP Flash YY January 1000 EU HCIP-X F, E, A, T Flash MM, YY January 1445 US S&P Global Comp, Svcs PMI Final January 1500 US ISM ⁠N-MFg PMI January

(Reporting by Ishaan Arora in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)