Steady in Asia-Pac After Lowest Close Since Mid-March

Gold is little changed in the Asia-Pac session, after closing at its lowest level in more than three months, with investors weighing the latest hawkish commentary from the heads of the Fed, the ECB, and the BoE during the ECB's annual conference in Portugal. However, no new perspectives were shared as they echoed the recent policy updates, emphasising the importance of tightening policies to address inflationary concerns.

• Market confidence of a hike at the July 26 FOMC climbed to 78%. November is pricing a cumulative 29bp of tightening at 5.364%.
• However, the yield on 10-year US tsys declined and stocks experienced volatility in response to the comments, suggesting ongoing concerns that a hawkish stance by the Federal Reserve could potentially lead to an economic downturn. Such a scenario could provide some support for the precious metal as a safe haven asset.