Gold price trades with positive bias around $2,375 area, focus remains glued to US CPI

• 
  Gold
  price
  ticks
  higher
  for
  the
  third
  straight
  day
  on
  Thursday,
  albeit
  lacking
  bullish
  conviction.
• 
  Fed
  rate
  cut
  bets
  keep
  the
  USD
  bulls
  on
  the
  defensive
  and
  continue
  to
  lend
  some
  support.
• 
  The
  risk-on
  mood
  caps
  the
  upside
  as
  traders
  keenly
  await
  the
  release
  of
  the
  US
  CPI
  report.

Gold
price
(XAU/USD)
attracts
some
buyers
for
the
third
successive
day
on
Thursday,
albeit
it
lacks
follow-through
and
trades
below
the
weekly
top
during
the
Asian
session.
Traders
now
seem
reluctant
and
prefer
to
wait
for
the
release
of
the
latest
consumer
inflation
figures
from
the

United
States
(US)
before
positioning
for
a
firm
near-term
direction.
The
key
US
CPI
report
will
be
looked
upon
for
more
cues
on
interest
rate
cuts
by
the

Federal
Reserve
(Fed),
which,
in
turn,
should
drive
the
US
Dollar
(USD)
demand
and
provide
some
meaningful
impetus
to
the
non-yielding
yellow
metal.

Heading
into
the
key
data
risk,
comments
from
Fed
Chair
Jerome
Powell
reaffirmed
market
expectations
that
the
central
bank
will
lower
borrowing
costs
in
September
and
again
in
December.
This
keeps
the
USD
bulls
on
the
defensive
and
continues
to
act
as
a
tailwind
for
the
Gold
price.
Apart
from
this,
sustained
central
bank
buying,
macroeconomic
uncertainties,
and
geopolitical
risks
lend
support
to
the
XAU/USD.
That
said,
the
prevalent
risk-on
environment
is
holding
back
bullish
traders
from
placing
fresh
bets
and
capping
any
further
gains
for
the
safe-haven
precious
metal. 

Daily
Digest
Market
Movers:
Gold
price
continues
to
draw
support
from
rising
Fed
rate
cut
bets

• Firming
  acceptance
  that
  the
  Federal
  Reserve
  (Fed)
  will
  begin
  its
  rate-cutting
  cycle
  in
  September
  and
  lower
  borrowing
  costs
  again
  in
  December
  continues
  to
  undermine
  the
  US
  Dollar,
  lending
  some
  support
  to
  the
  Gold
  price. 
• The
  bets
  were
  lifted
  by
  Fed
  Chair
  Jerome
  Powell’s
  comments,
  saying
  that
  the
  US
  remained
  on
  a
  path
  back
  to
  stable
  prices
  and
  that
  the
  central
  bank
  will
  consider
  neutral
  rates
  later
  in
  2024
  once
  inflation
  makes
  more
  progress.
• Powell
  acknowledged
  some
  cooling
  in
  the
  US
  economy,
  though
  he
  said
  that
  he
  continues
  to
  see
  a
  soft
  landing,
  boosting
  investors’
  appetite
  for
  riskier
  assets,
  which,
  in
  turn,
  is
  seen
  capping
  the
  upside
  for
  the
  safe-haven
  XAU/USD.
• Powell
  also
  reiterated
  that
  the
  Fed
  remained
  committed
  to
  its
  2%
  inflation
  target,
  making
  the
  release
  of
  the
  latest
  US
  consumer
  inflation
  more
  relevant
  and
  holding
  back
  traders
  from
  placing
  fresh
  bullish
  bets
  around
  the
  metal.
• The
  headline
  CPI
  is
  estimated
  to
  have
  risen
  by
  0.1%
  in
  June
  and
  the
  yearly
  rate
  decelerated
  from
  3.3%
  to
  3.1%,
  while
  the
  Core
  CPI
  (excluding
  Food
  and
  Energy
  prices)
  is
  expected
  to
  remain
  sticky
  and
  come
  in
  at
  a
  3.4%
  YoY
  rate.
• The
  crucial
  inflation
  data
  will
  set
  the
  stage
  for
  the
  Fed’s
  rate-cut
  path,
  which,
  in
  turn,
  should
  influence
  the
  USD
  price
  dynamics
  and
  help
  in
  determining
  the
  next
  leg
  of
  a
  directional
  move
  for
  the
  non-yielding
  yellow
  metal.

Technical
Analysis:
Gold
price
could
aim
to
reclaim
the
$2,400
mark
and
retest
the
all-time
peak

From
a
technical
perspective,
last
week’s
sustained
breakout
through
the
50-day
Simple
Moving
Average
(SMA)
and
a
subsequent
move
beyond
the
$2,365
supply
zone
was
seen
as
a
fresh
trigger
for
bullish
traders.
Moreover,
oscillators
on
the
daily
chart
have
been
gaining
positive
traction
and
suggest
that
the
path
of
least
resistance
for
the
Gold
price
is
to
the
upside.
This,
in
turn,
supports
prospects
for
some
follow-through
strength
towards
reclaiming
the
$2,400
mark
with
some
intermediate
hurdle
near
the
overnight
swing
high,
around
the
$2,386-2,387
zone,
and
the
$2,393
area,
over
a
one-month
top
touched
last
week.

On
the
flip
side,
any
corrective
slide
is
likely
to
find
some
support
near
the
$2,360-2,358
region
ahead
of
the
50-day
SMA,
currently
pegged
near
the
$2,345
area.
A
convincing
break
below
the
latter
has
the
potential
to
drag
the
Gold
price
to
the
$2,319-2,318
support
en
route
to
the
$2,300
mark
and
the
$2,285
horizontal
zone.
The
latter
now
coincides
with
the
100-day
SMA,
which,
if
broken,
decisively
might
shift
the
near-term
bias
in
favor
of
bearish
traders.
The

XAU/USD
might
then
slide
to
the
$2,258
intermediate
support
before
dropping
to
the
$2,225-2,220
area
and
the
$2,200
round-figure
mark.