<p>Gold prices ticked lower on Tuesday, as cautious investors awaited US inflation data to get clues on how aggressive the Federal Reserve needs to be in raising interest rates.</p>.<p>Spot gold fell 0.2 per cent to $1,721.49 per ounce by 0302 GMT.</p>.<p>Prices had hit a two-week high at $1,734.99 in the previous session as the dollar fell.</p>.<p>US gold futures were down 0.5 per cent at $1,732.</p>.<p>"There are expectations for inflation to become a lot softer and that could help gold actually run a little bit further as expectations could then be for less aggressive Fed hikes after the September meeting," said Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index. However "more volatile move will come if we don't see that happen and that's where you could see gold really come under pressure... For us to be confident that bulls have regained control, we probably need to see gold break above $1,740."</p>.<p>US consumer price data, due at 1230 GMT, is expected to show headline inflation rose 8.1 per cent year-over-year in August versus 8.5 per cent in July. The reading puts focus on the Fed's meeting next week.</p>.<p>A <em>Reuters </em>poll of economists expects the central bank to deliver another 75-basis-point interest rate hike and likely hold its policy rate steady for an extended period once it eventually peaks. Even though gold is seen as a hedge against inflation, higher interest rates increase the opportunity cost of holding the bullion while boosts the dollar, in which the precious metal is priced.</p>.<p>On the day, the dollar index was steady near a two-week low. Spot silver fell 0.8 per cent to $19.62 per ounce, having recorded its biggest one-day percentage gain since February 2021 on Monday. Platinum slipped 0.7 per cent to $900.94 and palladium shed 3.6 per cent to $2,184.67 after falling as much as 3.8 per cent earlier. </p>
<p>Gold prices ticked lower on Tuesday, as cautious investors awaited US inflation data to get clues on how aggressive the Federal Reserve needs to be in raising interest rates.</p>.<p>Spot gold fell 0.2 per cent to $1,721.49 per ounce by 0302 GMT.</p>.<p>Prices had hit a two-week high at $1,734.99 in the previous session as the dollar fell.</p>.<p>US gold futures were down 0.5 per cent at $1,732.</p>.<p>"There are expectations for inflation to become a lot softer and that could help gold actually run a little bit further as expectations could then be for less aggressive Fed hikes after the September meeting," said Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index. However "more volatile move will come if we don't see that happen and that's where you could see gold really come under pressure... For us to be confident that bulls have regained control, we probably need to see gold break above $1,740."</p>.<p>US consumer price data, due at 1230 GMT, is expected to show headline inflation rose 8.1 per cent year-over-year in August versus 8.5 per cent in July. The reading puts focus on the Fed's meeting next week.</p>.<p>A <em>Reuters </em>poll of economists expects the central bank to deliver another 75-basis-point interest rate hike and likely hold its policy rate steady for an extended period once it eventually peaks. Even though gold is seen as a hedge against inflation, higher interest rates increase the opportunity cost of holding the bullion while boosts the dollar, in which the precious metal is priced.</p>.<p>On the day, the dollar index was steady near a two-week low. Spot silver fell 0.8 per cent to $19.62 per ounce, having recorded its biggest one-day percentage gain since February 2021 on Monday. Platinum slipped 0.7 per cent to $900.94 and palladium shed 3.6 per cent to $2,184.67 after falling as much as 3.8 per cent earlier. </p>