FX.co ★ Gold Climbs to Over Three-Month High

Gold climbed nearly 1% on Monday to trade above $4,650 an ounce, its highest level since mid-May, as a weaker dollar enhanced the metal’s appeal. Investors are now looking ahead to key US inflation data and remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh later this week for further signals on the interest-rate outlook.

The precious metal advanced more than 5% last week after a US Treasury buyback support plan drove the dollar to multi-month lows. Market attention is now centered on the July PCE price index release on Wednesday and Warsh’s speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday.

Futures markets currently assign roughly a 40% probability to a rate hike in September, with about a 60% chance that rates will be left unchanged, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

On the geopolitical front, the US has threatened Iran with what it called “the greatest financial offensive ever marshalled,” as Washington prepares to roll out economic sanctions aimed at Iran’s key trading partners.