Gold prices settle slightly lower as investors assess Powell’s remarks

Gold prices settled slightly lower today, March 8, against the backdrop of testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell before Congress on the outlook for monetary policy.

“The latest economic data have come in stronger than expected, which suggests that the ultimate level of interest rates is likely to be higher than previously anticipated,” Powell said in remarks prepared for two appearances from March 7-8 on Capitol Hill.

“If the totality of the data were to indicate that faster tightening is warranted, we would be prepared to increase the pace of rate hikes,” he continued.

Figures out today from ADP indicated that private payrolls in February increased by 242,000, exceeding the estimate for 200,000 and the 119,000 in January.

In terms of trading, gold for April delivery made a marginal decline of $1.40 at settlement of today’s session, reaching $1,818.60 an ounce.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, nudged up slightly by 0.09% to 105.70 points at 9:49 pm Makkah time.