Shafaq News / Gold prices held steady on Tuesday helped by a weaker dollar, as investors awaited more U.S. economic data this week that could shed light on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy outlook amid surging market expectations of interest rate cuts.

Spot gold XAU= was flat at $2,027.15 per ounce, as of 0105 GMT. U.S. gold futures GCcv1 were unchanged at $2,040.90.

The dollar .DXY was down 0.1% against its rivals, making gold less expensive for other currency holders. USD/

The Fed last week signalled that the historic tightening of monetary policy engineered over the last two years is at an end and lower borrowing costs are coming in 2024.

The Fed is not precommiting to cutting interest rates soon and swiftly, and the jump in market expectations that it will do so is at odds with how the U.S. central bank functions, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said on Monday.

Markets are now pricing in about a 69% chance of a Fed rate cut in March, according to CME FedWatch tool. Lower interest rates tend to support non-interest-bearing bullion.

Investors are awaiting a series of U.S. economic data this week, including the November core personal consumption expenditure (PCE) index report, the Fed's preferred measure of underlying inflation, due on Friday.

(Reuters)