2019.11.2018:38:00UTC+00Gold Futures Settle Flat Ahead Of Fed Minutes

Gold futures pared earlier gains and ended roughly flat on Wednesday, ahead of the Federal Reserve's minutes of its monetary policy meeting in October.

Post release of the minutes, gold futures edged lower.

The dollar index continued to hold in positive territory.

Gold futures for December ended down $0.10 at $1,474.20 an ounce for the session.

Gold contracts rose to $1,479.20 earlier in the session as traders opted for the safe-haven asset amid an escalation in tensions between the U.S. and China after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened higher tariffs on Chinese goods on Tuesday.

Gold futures for December ended up $2.40, or about 0.2%, at $1,476.80 an ounce on Tuesday, after having gained $3.40 an ounce a day earlier.

Following the release of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting minutes, gold futures for December dropped to $1,472.00 an ounce.

Silver futures for December ended down $0.003 at $17.115 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $2.6495 per pound, down $0.0070 from previous close.

The minutes of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting reveal official were upbeat about the economy in late October than they had been about six weeks earlier.

According to the minutes, Fed officials viewed the economic outlook as positive. "Uncertainties associated with trade tensions as well as geopolitical risks had eased somewhat, although they remained elevated," the minutes said.

The minutes say the Fed voted 8 to 2 to cut rates by 25 basis points. The minutes say that the Fed would be watching the data closely and policy was not on a pre-set course.

Fed officials said they opposed pushing their benchmark interest rate into negative territory in a downturn as central banks in Europe and Japan have done. They were of the view that bond purchases would be effective tools in fighting the next downturn.