Gold Drops as Dollar Gains on Powell's Rate Hike Warning

GOLD - SINGAPORE. Gold prices fell to a one-month low on Monday as U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged that a quick undo of the U.S. central bank's rate tightening was far from over, boosting the dollar.

Spot gold was down 0.26% at $1,732.39 per ounce by 1230 GMT after hitting its lowest since July 27 at $1,719.56 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures dropped 0.3% to $1,743.80.

The dollar index hit a 20-year high, making greenback-priced bullion more expensive for overseas buyers.

In a speech at the Jackson Hole central banking conference in Wyoming, Powell's remarks added to the tide of recent policymakers pushing back against market expectations that the Fed would dial back its monetary policy quickly.

"Gold is expected to remain suppressed as long as markets believe that the idea for a dovish pivot by the Fed remains premature, and take to heart the Fed's message that rates are due to stay elevated for longer," said Han Tan, chief market analyst at Exinity.

Bullion bulls may, however, "find comfort from recent history whereby gold's dips below $1,700 have proved short-lived, with the psychologically-important mark having offered strong support in recent years," Tan added.

Markets are now largely pricing in a 75-basis-point rate hike at the Fed's September meeting. Gold tends to suffer in such an environment as rising rates increase the opportunity cost of holding bullion.

Once the market digests the fact that interest rates are likely to remain elevated for some more time, the focus will turn to an economic slowdown caused by the hikes and that are likely to support gold prices, said Sugandha Sachdeva, vice president of commodity and currency research at Religare Broking.

Elsewhere, spot silver fell 0.9% to $18.72 per ounce, while platinum rose 0.2% to $865.03. Palladium gained 0.7% to $2,125.31.