Gold holds tight range as traders focus on Fed decision

Gold traded in a narrow price range on Wednesday, as investors refrained from taking big bets ahead of the US Federal Reserve's policy decision due later in the day.

Spot gold was down 0.1 per cent at $1,925.09 per ounce, as of 0237 GMT. US gold futures fell 0.3 per cent to $1,940.50.

Gold should hold above $1,900 levels heading into the Fed meeting and the Fed message needs to be heard to grasp bullion's next likely direction, said Matt Simpson, a senior market analyst at City Index.

The Fed's policy decision is due at 1900 GMT, followed by a press conference from Chair Jerome Powell at 1930 GMT. The US central bank is widely expected to scale back rate hikes to 25 basis points (bps) from 50 bps in December.

Lower interest rates tend to be beneficial for bullion, decreasing the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding asset.

"There is a semi-decent chance that Powell will not deliver the dovish hike markets want... So, that leaves gold vulnerable to a bump in the road at these highs, if we see the inevitable higher dollar and yields in case Powell keeps quiet on a pause or pivot," said Simpson.

Meanwhile, data released on Tuesday showed US labour costs increased at their slowest pace in a year in the fourth quarter as wage growth slowed.

The Bank of England and the European Central Bank are expected to raise rates by 50 bps on Thursday.

Among other precious metals, spot silver lost 0.4 per cent to $23.61 per ounce, platinum dropped 0.3 per cent to $1,008.62 and palladium inched 0.1 per centlower to $1,647.17.

Analysts have cut their palladium price forecasts and raised platinum price estimates as electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles disrupt the auto industry on which both metals rely for demand, a Reuters poll showed.