Gold prices end down ahead of US inflation data

Gold prices finished in the red for the first trading session of the week today, Feb. 12, ahead of the release of economic data on inflation and consumer confidence in the US, which may provide clues on the possibility of expected interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

Bullion for April delivery plummeted by 0.30%, or $5.70, to close at $2,033 per ounce, after touching $2,041.80 in early trading.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, stabilized at 104.06 points at 09:47 pm Makkah time.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, expectations for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points weakened to 15.5%, compared to 76.9% a month ago. On the other hand, forecasts for a rate fixation at the May meeting soared to 39.5% from 0% one month earlier.

Markets are awaiting the release of the US inflation reading for January, amid expectations of a further slowdown in the Consumer Price Index, which is scheduled to be out the day after. Further, the Producer Price Index and consumer confidence data for the US are due on Feb. 16.