Gold turned positive and rose to a 12-week high on Wednesday, after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it was “closely monitoring” global economic and financial developments, and held interest rates steady as expected.
The central bank removed a previous reference from its statement to the risks of the economic outlook being balanced and said it was weighing how the global economy and financial markets could affect the outlook.
“Gold has risen to highs of this rally as the FOMC provided a perfunctory yet cordial nod to doves by removing ‘risks are balanced’ and acknowledging market conditions,” said Tai Wong, director of base and precious metals trading for BMO Capital Markets in New York.
“For gold bulls, it is an invitation to push gold higher before the next major hurdle which is the February employment report.”
Spot gold was up 0.6 percent at $1,126.70 an ounce at 2:55 p.m. EST (1955 GMT), the highest since Nov. 3, after trading down 0.5 prior to the Fed statement.
U.S. gold for February delivery settled down 0.4 percent at $1,115.80 per ounce, before the Fed statement.
