Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose on Wednesday as worse-than-expected U.S. economic data gave support to the precious metal.
The most active gold contract for December delivery rose 0.1 U. S. dollars, or 0.01 percent, to settle at 1,068.70 dollars per ounce. Analysts said that gold logged a slight rise as traders remained cautious after the cancellation of a soccer match between Germany and the Netherlands over fears of a bombing, and also a shootout between Paris police and militants.
Some analysts believed that gold was given support as the Commerce Department said U.S. privately-owned housing starts in October were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.06 million, below market estimates. Gold rose as traders were hedging their bets in the wake of the worse-than-expected report ahead of the release of the meeting minutes from the October Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, analysts said.
Analysts believe the minutes will likely give a strong indication as to the direction of the Fed with regards to a December rate hike. The meeting minutes were due out after the market's close, but as of 1800 GMT, the implied probability of a December rate hike is 68 percent, unchanged from the previous day, according to the CMEGroup's Fedwatch tool.
An increase in the Fed's interest rate drives investors away from gold and towards assets with a return, as the precious metal bears no interest. Gold's gain was capped as the U.S. Dollar Index, a gauge of the greenback against a basket of major currencies, rose on the Fed minutes.
Traders will also be looking towards the Department of Labor's weekly jobless claims report and the Philadelphia Fed Business Outlook Survey, both due out on Thursday, for more indications as to the Fed's thinking.
Silver for December delivery fell 9 cents, or 0.64 percent, to close at 14.081 dollars per ounce. Platinum for January delivery dropped 7 dollars, or 0.82 percent, to close at 848.00 dollars per ounce.
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