Flat As Fed Takes Focus

Gold is back from session lows to be virtually unchanged at writing, printing ~$1,924/oz. The precious metal has struggled to make headway above neutral levels as nominal U.S. Tsy yields have risen in Asian hours (with the 10-Year Tsy yield hitting levels last witnessed since Apr ‘19), continuing to operate around the bottom of Tuesday’s range.

• To recap, gold closed ~$9/oz lower on Tuesday as U.S. real yields and the USD (DXY) ticked higher, facilitated by hawkish comments from Fed Gov Brainard pointing to a “rapid pace” of Fed balance sheet reduction that could begin as soon as May.
• Looking ahead, focus will turn to comments on the economic outlook from the Fed’s Harker (1330 GMT), as well as the release of the FOMC’s March meeting minutes (1800 GMT).
• From a technical perspective, bullion remains range bound, while the outlook is bearish following the pullback from $2,070.4 (Mar 8 high). Key support is located at ~$1,906.6/oz (50-Day EMA), with further support at $1,895.3/oz. While both support levels were probed last week, a clear break lower would likely signal room for deeper moves lower. On the other hand, resistance is situated at $1,966.1/oz (Mar 24 high).