• Gold price fails to build on overnight positive move amid hawkish Fed expectations.
• A modest downtick in the US bond yields undermines the USD and lends some support.
• The uncertainty over the Fed’s policy outlook holds back bears from placing fresh bets.

Gold price (XAU/USD) struggles to capitalize on the previous day’s positive move and oscillates in a narrow trading band through the early European session on Wednesday. Market participants now seem convinced that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will keep interest rates higher for longer in the wake of a still resilient US economy, which, in turn, is seen as a key factor acting as a headwind for the non-yielding bullion. Apart from this, a generally positive tone around the equity markets further seems to undermine the safe-haven commodity amid hopes for a de-escalation of the crisis in the Middle East.

The downside for the Gold price, however, remains cushioned as traders now seem reluctant to place aggressive bets and prefer to wait for more cues about the likely timing and pace of interest rate cuts by the Fed this year. Hence, the focus will remain glued to next week’s release of the latest US consumer inflation figures, which might influence the Fed’s future policy decisions and influence the XAU/USD. In the meantime, traders on Wednesday will take cues from the US Trade Balance data, which, along with speeches by Fed officials, should produce short-term opportunities around the commodity.