Gold stays firm above $4,400 as US inflation cools
Gold holds above $4,400/oz near ten-week highs after US consumer inflation slowed for a second straight month to 3.4% in July.
Gold held above $4,400 an ounce on Thursday, hovering near ten-week highs as relatively stable US consumer inflation reduced pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in the near term.
Data released Wednesday showed US consumer inflation slowed for a second consecutive month to 3.4% in July, while rising just 0.1% from the previous month.
Investors now await producer inflation data due later in the global day for further clues on the trajectory of price pressures.
Markets now see around a 40% chance of a 25 basis point rate hike from the Fed in September, down from nearly 50% a day earlier.
Gold also drew support from a pullback in oil prices as investors assessed the prospects of a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
However, escalating rhetoric between the US and Iran amid deadlocked negotiations reduced the likelihood of an imminent agreement.