Gold prices held steady amid speculation of a rate cut, copper near monthly low By Investing.com

Investing.com– Gold prices rose in Asian trading on Wednesday, but remained within a range seen for nearly two weeks, amid continued speculation about when the Federal Reserve will begin cutting rates of interest.

Among industrial metals, copper prices fell to their lowest level in almost a month, erasing most of their advance to record highs through May, amid growing concerns about the slowdown in global economic growth.

Gold saw some respite as it fell to its lowest level in two months this week. But the greenback saw a slight recovery on Wednesday.

rose 0.4% to $2,337.35 an ounce, while expiring August rose 0.4% to $2,357.05 an ounce as of 12:46 a.m. ET (04:46 GMT). But spot gold remained clearly in a range of $2,300 to $2,350 per ounce observed for almost two weeks, a range it entered after falling from record highs reached in May.

Gold remains range-bound despite rate cut speculation

Traders remain cautious about betting big on the yellow metal, even as a string of weak U.S. economic data has fueled speculation that the Fed will begin cutting rates in September.

Tuesday's weak data reinforced that notion, just days after weak data and a downgraded reading.

Traders showed they were steadily increasing their bets on a rate cut in September.

But markets remained cautious, with data expected on Friday expected to provide more definitive indications on the labor market.

The Fed will also keep rates steady amid persistent US inflation, and this is widely expected to remain stable.

Other precious metals were also volatile on Wednesday. fell 0.2% to $995.50 an ounce, while it rose 0.8% to $29.863 an ounce, after both metals posted sharp losses on Tuesday.

Copper near one-month low as economic outlook deteriorates

The London Metal Exchange benchmark rose slightly to $9,975.50 per tonne, while the one-month index rose to $4.5497 per pound.

Both contracts were near one-month lows, having largely erased all their gains in May, when they briefly hit record highs.

Copper sentiment has deteriorated as poor economic performance from the United States and China has raised concerns about slowing global growth, which bodes poorly for copper demand .