Gold records a peak of more than 9 months
Gold prices extended their gains today, Thursday, to their highest levels in more than nine months, after the Federal Reserve (the US central bank) raised interest rates by 25 basis points, as expected, and the market considered the comments of its chairman, Jerome Powell, as mitigation.
By 0401 GMT, spot gold rose 0.1% to $1951.79 an ounce, after hitting its highest level since April 2022 earlier in the session.
US gold futures rose 1.3% to $1,967.40.
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point yesterday, after big increases over the course of a year.
But Powell warned of further monetary tightening, noting at the same time that progress had been made in reducing inflation, which he said was in its early stages.
"Although Powell said the rate hikes may continue, the market expects the Fed to not be as aggressive anymore, which is supportive of gold," said Brian Lan, managing director at GoldSilver Central in Singapore.
"From now on, traders will focus on economic data and comments by Federal Reserve officials to get more indications," he added.
Gold tends to benefit from lower interest rates, as this reduces the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding yellow metal.
The dollar index fell 0.3%.
The weakness of the US currency makes the bullion priced in it more attractive to buyers than holders of other currencies.
As for other precious metals, spot silver rose 0.8% to $24.17 an ounce, its highest level in a week.
Platinum rose 0.6% to $1,009.69, while palladium fell 0.2% to $1,665.82.
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