Gold up on lower dollar, US Fed decision ahead ‎

Gold prices rose on Wednesday as the dollar fell, while cautious investors awaited a key monetary policy statement from the US Central Bank that may provide indications of the pace of interest rate hikes.

According to “Reuters”, gold in spot trading rose 0.2% to $1650.67 an ounce (an ounce) by 0555 GMT, and US gold futures rose 0.3% to $ 1655.00 an ounce.

The dollar index fell 0.2%, which strengthened the attractiveness of dollar-denominated gold to buyers holding other currencies.

The US central bank is scheduled to release its monetary policy statement at 1800 GMT on Wednesday, followed by a press conference by Bank of England President Jerome Powell.

The central bank is expected to decide on a fourth consecutive increase of 75 basis points in interest rates, but investors will look in the statement for indications about the possibility of slowing the pace of monetary tightening.

As for other precious metals, spot silver rose 0.1 percent to $19.67 an ounce, after rising to a three-week peak on Tuesday.

Platinum rose 0.9% to $951.63, and palladium rose 1.2% to $1,901.70.