Gold prices remain flat as markets await Jackson Hole speech from Fed’s Waller

⑴On Thursday, gold prices remained largely steady, trading around $4,590 per ounce. This comes after recording the largest single-day decline in a week, as the market awaits Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Walsh’s policy signals at Friday’s Jackson Hole Symposium. ⑵Although US inflation data came in slightly higher than expected, ongoing concerns over global debt continue to support demand for precious metals. Driven by the US Treasury’s expansion of long-term old bond buybacks and market fears over weakening US dollar purchasing power, gold prices earlier this week reached their highest point in over three months. ⑶Investors are hoping to gain insight into the Fed’s policy approach for bringing inflation back to target levels from Walsh’s first public speech at Jackson Hole. ⑷Data released Wednesday showed the July PCE price index rose 3.7% year-on-year, slightly exceeding market expectations. ⑸The CME FedWatch tool indicates that markets currently price the probability of a September rate hike at 38%, with the chances of another hike by year-end holding above 70%.