Gold edged higher on Tuesday buoyed by a softer dollar, with investors focusing on the first U.S. presidential debate and progress on a new U.S. stimulus bill.

 

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold rose 0.15% to $1,883.69 per ounce by 0058 GMT. Prices rose 1.1% in the previous session, its biggest one-day gain since late August.

* U.S. gold futures were up 0.4% at $1,889.70.

* The dollar index was down 0.1% against rivals, having recorded its biggest daily percentage drop in a month on Monday. 

* A weaker dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of other currencies.

* President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden will square off in their first presidential debate later in the day, with five weeks to go until the Nov. 3 general election. 

* U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday that Democratic lawmakers unveiled a new, $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which she said was a compromise measure that reduces the costs of the economic aid. She did not say when there would be a vote on the latest proposal. 

* The number of new COVID-19 cases in the United States has risen for two weeks in a row in 27 out of 50 states, according to a Reuters analysis, adding to concerns over its economic fallout.

* The European Union and Britain both said a post-Brexit deal was still some way off and differences persisted on Monday over putting in place their earlier divorce deal as they began a decisive week of talks in Brussels. 

* Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust GLD , the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.16% to 1,268.89 tonnes on Monday. 

* Silver fell 0.1% to $23.68 per ounce, platinum fell 0.2% to $880.56 and palladium gained 0.5% to $2,265.25.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

0900 EU Consumer Confid. Final

1200 Germany CPI Prelim YY

1200 Germany HICP Prelim YY

1400 US Consumer Confidence

(Reporting by Eileen Soreng in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich) ((eileen.soreng@thomsonreuters.com; Within U.S. +1 646 223 8780, Outside U.S. +91 80 6749 6131; Reuters Messaging: eileen.soreng.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))