Investing.com — Gold prices edged higher in Asian trade on Wednesday as political turmoil in South Korea spurred some safe-haven demand, but hopes for further clues on U.S. interest rates kept traders on the sidelines. Ta.
The yellow metal received some relief this week as concerns about the collapse of the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah also fueled shelter demand. However, gold's gains were largely limited by a sharp rise in the dollar, as uncertainty over the long-term outlook for US interest rates led to a sharp rise in the dollar.
By 11:25 pm ET (04:25 GMT), the February deadline rose 0.1% to $2,646.53 an ounce.
South Korea attracts attention after failing to declare martial law
South Korean President Yun Seok-Yeol declared martial law on Tuesday, but quickly withdrew it after fierce opposition from the National Assembly and the public.
Although Congress voted completely against martial law, South Korean opposition parties also called for Yoon's impeachment, plunging South Korea into its worst political crisis since the 1980s.
Political uncertainty in South Korea hurt investor sentiment across Asia, as the country is seen as a pillar of the East Asian economy. This has stimulated demand for gold as a safe haven in some quarters.
Rising tensions between Israel and Lebanon also spurred some safe-haven buying after Israel threatened to hold the Lebanese government accountable for the collapse of its ceasefire with Hezbollah. Both Israel and extremist groups have launched attacks on each other over the past week, violating a US-brokered ceasefire agreement.
Metals market pressured by strong dollar ahead of Powell's speech
Broad metal prices were lower on Wednesday as traders awaited the speech for further clues on interest rates.
Powell is scheduled to speak later in the day, a few weeks before the last Fed meeting of the year.
The central bank is expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points in December, but the long-term outlook for interest rates is becoming more uncertain in the face of the Trump administration's persistent inflation and inflationary policies.
This uncertainty caused a spike in , putting pressure on metal prices overall.
Other precious metals, including , were little moved on Wednesday. In industrial metals, the London Metal Exchange index fell 0.3% to $9,096.0 a tonne, compared with a 0.2% decline in February to $4.1895 a tonne.
