Gold Advances With Central Bank Policies in Focus; Dollar Drops

Gold rebounded after Friday’s sell-off as investors focus on monetary policy meetings in Japan and the U.S.

Bullion for immediate delivery advanced as much as 0.5 percent to $1,255.03 an ounce and was at $1,254.44 by 9:24 a.m. in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal lost 1.8 percent on Friday after stocks and other riskier assets surged as investors reassessed European Central Bank President Mario Draghi’s economic stimulus measures.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.9 percent Monday, while a gauge of the U.S. dollar fell for a fourth day, helping demand for bullion by making it less expensive in other currencies.

Gold has jumped 18 percent this year on the back of demand for haven assets amid volatile equity markets. Investors now turn their attention to central banks for more signals on monetary policies. The Bank of Japan, which surprised with a move to negative interest rates in January, begins a two-day meeting Monday while the Federal Reserve meets March 15-16.

The futures market is implying only a 4 percent chance of the Fed raising rates this month, with the odds of a June rate hike at about a coin flip. Higher rates reduce the appeal of gold, which doesn’t pay interest.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ranjeetha Pakiam in Singapore at rpakiam@bloomberg.net. To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jason Rogers at jrogers73@bloomberg.net, Phoebe Sedgman

By: Ranjeetha Pakiam

©2016 Bloomberg News