Gold price (XAU/USD) remained subdued on Thursday as a stickier US inflation report for August confused investors about further direction. The precious metal strives for a decisive move as the market hopes that the impact of higher headline inflation due to rising gasoline prices remains limited to the headline Consumer Price Index (CPI). The US Dollar demonstrates a volatility compression after a slightly hot inflation report failed to prompt hawkish Federal Reserve (Fed) bets.
After the US inflation report, investors shifted their focus to the Producer Price Index (PPI) and consumer spending data for August, which will solve the interest rate puzzle further. The current restrictive interest rate cycle has failed in denting labor demand and consumer spending significantly, but the market remains worried that a “higher for longer” rate context could dampen the broader picture ahead. Gold price hovers near a three-week low, marginally above the crucial support of $1,900. The precious metal struggles to discover bids as the inflation report for August indicates upside risks to headline inflation due to rising gasoline prices. The yellow metal fails to sustain above the 200-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), which trades at around $1,910.00. The declining 20 and 50 EMAs portray a bearish short-term trend.