Oil Prices Rise While Gold Reaches Its Month-Lowest

Oil prices rose on Tuesday, and Brent crude oil rose for the fourth consecutive trading day. The prospect of Iran’s provision of additional supplies to the market soon faded as the U.S. rejoined negotiations with Tehran’s nuclear agreement.

Brent crude oil rose by 17 cents, or 0.2%, to $73.03 a barrel and was up 0.2% on Monday. U.S. oil rose 15 cents, or 0.2%, to US$71.03 per barrel, after falling 3 cents the previous trading day.

The U.S., Iran, and other parties to the 2015 Tehran nuclear program agreement resumed indirect discussions in Vienna on Saturday. The European Union described the talks as “intensified.”

The return of the United States to the agreement will pave the way for the lifting of sanctions on Iran. It will allow OPEC members to resume crude oil exports.

The Fed is preparing to debate how and when to start scaling back the massive asset purchase program that helped support the U.S. economy during the pandemic.

Gold Fell in Early Asian Trading on Tuesday

Gold futures fell slightly by 0.12% to US$1,863.60. Furthermore, gold continued to fall after reaching a nearly one-month low on the previous trading day. Investors are now waiting for the Fed’s policy decision to get further clues about inflation. They also wait for the future monetary policy of the central bank.

The U.S. dollar, which is usually the opposite of gold, fell slightly on Tuesday. The benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury bond yield fell below 1.50% to close to a three-month low.

The Fed Will Announce Its Decision on Wednesday

The Fed will hold a two-day policy meeting later in the day and announce its decision on Wednesday.

U.S. consumer price data, including the consumer price index released earlier this month, also boosted gold.

For the second time in less than a decade, the Fed will debate how to cancel its unprecedented asset purchase plan to cushion the U.S. economy during COVID-19.

In the Asia-Pacific region, the Reserve Bank of Australia released the latest meeting minutes earlier in the day. Elsewhere in the area, the Bank of Japan will announce its policy decision on Friday.

In Europe, the Swiss National Bank and the Norwegian Bank will announce their policy decisions on Thursday.

In terms of other precious metals, silver rose slightly by 0.1%, palladium remained stable at US$2,751.68, and platinum rose slightly by 0.2%.