UAE: Gold trades lower in early trade

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Gold prices inched lower on Thursday morning, pressured by expectations of aggressive interest rate hikes after the US Federal Reserve chief doubled down on the central bank's fight against inflation.

Spot gold was down 0.3 per cent at $1,832.13 per ounce by 9.10 am UAE time.

In line with the drop in global rates, precious metal prices fell in the UAE at the opening of the market on Thursday. The 24K prices fell one-and-a-half dirham to Dh222.0 per gram on Thursday morning compared to Dh223.5 at the close of the markets on Wednesday.

Similarly, other variants of the yellow metal also fell on Thursday, with 22K opening at Dh208.5, 21K at Dh199.0 and 18K at Dh170.5.

Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst at Oanda, said gold is directionless.

"Until we get a material directional move by the US dollar, it seems unlikely that gold will sail out of the equatorial doldrums. Gold has resistance at $1,860 and $1,880, the latter appearing an insurmountable obstacle for now," he said.

"With (Fed Chair Jerome) Powell pointing out overnight that 1 per cent rises were a real possibility, it's a reminder of that constant pressure on gold prices from rising interest rates," said Michael McCarthy, chief strategy officer at Tiger Brokers, Australia.

Michael Langford, director at corporate advisory AirGuide, said it is more likely for gold to trade below $1,800/oz in the next two weeks than not.