Gold Little Changed Near Eight-month Lows

(RTTNews) - Gold prices were little changed on Tuesday, after having fallen to their lowest level in nearly eight months earlier due to Fed rate hike jitters and lingering U.S.-Iran tensions over the control of Strait of Hormuz. Spot gold was little changed at $4,016 on ounce but was down more than 11 percent so far in June, marking its fourth consecutive monthly fall and the biggest quarterly drop since April 2013. U.S. gold futures were down 0.2 percent at $4,031 an ounce.

Talks between the United States and Iran in Doha appear uncertain after recent exchange of fire in the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on Truth Social, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed the meeting would take place in Qatari capital amid tensions over Strait of Hormuz and asset releases.

Trump later clarified that the U.S. delegation is traveling to Doha only to monitor implementation of the recently signed MoU, raising doubts over the future of the fragile U.S.-Iran peace process.

Elsewhere, Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei said U.S. officials' trip to Doha had nothing to do with the Iranian delegation visiting the city and that no talks between the two sides were scheduled.

"Over the coming days, we will not have any negotiation meetings with the U.S. side at any level," he added.

A top Iranian official reiterated the country's determination to maintain control over maritime traffic moving through the Strait of Hormuz even if Oman opts not to participate.

It is feared that any escalation or disruption to shipping through the vital waterway could reignite concerns over energy supplies, inflation and the outlook for interest rates.

As inflation and growth concerns mount, traders also await cues from a slew of key U.S. data due this week before the U.S. Independence Day holiday on July 3.

Among the prominent reports, the Conference Board's consumer confidence index, which includes closely watched measures of job availability, will be out later today, followed by ADP's monthly private payrolls report and the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing survey index on Wednesday.

The all-important June jobs report is due on Thursday, with economists expecting payroll gains to slow to 75,000 from 172,000 in May. The jobless rate is likely to hold steady at 4.3 percent.

The jobs report will provide fresh insights into whether the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates elevated for an extended period.

With oil prices moving back to pre-war levels, markets remain hopeful that the European Central Bank (ECB) will not raise interest rates in the near term.

ECB Chief Economist Philip Lane said in Sintra, Portugal, today that the second-round effect from higher energy prices is probably going to take some time to show up and that policymakers won't lock themselves into a path for interest rates in the meantime.