Gold prices in the UAE fell at the start of trading on Thursday morning due to a global decrease in yellow metal prices. This decline occurred after the release of minutes from the US Federal Reserve’s June meeting, which kept hopes alive for another interest rate hike at the end of July.
According to data from the Dubai Jewellery Group, the price of 24K gold was Dh232.25 per gram on Thursday morning, compared to Dh233 per gram at the close of markets on Wednesday. Similarly, the prices for 22K, 21K, and 18K gold also opened lower at Dh215, Dh208.25, and Dh178.5 per gram, respectively.
Investors were eagerly awaiting several US economic data releases that could influence the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates. Gold is sensitive to rising interest rates because they increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding gold.
Manish Jaradi, a strategist at dailyFX, explained that the minutes of the Fed meeting revealed that almost all officials agreed to keep interest rates unchanged in June, although some participants wanted to proceed with a rate hike. However, 16 out of 18 officials still expected the benchmark interest rate to increase by at least a quarter of a percentage point by the end of the year.
