FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was flat at $1,841.56 an ounce at 0117 GMT. US gold futures also held steady at $1,842.90.
* NATO sent reinforcements and the United States put troops on alert as tensions in Ukraine rose, while Britain said it was withdrawing some personnel and dependents from its embassy in Ukraine, a day after the United States announced it was ordering family members of diplomats to leave.
* Wall Street rebounded from a late selloff to close higher on Monday as bargain hunters pushed the indices into positive territory.
* Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields fell to one-week lows on Monday, reducing the opportunity cost of holding noninterest-bearing bullion.
* Investors focus on the Fed’s two-day policy meeting, which begins on Tuesday, as the central bank is expected to signal that it plans to raise rates by 25 basis points in March.
* Gold is generally considered a hedge against inflation, but it is very sensitive to rising US interest rates, which increases the opportunity cost of holding non-interest bearing bullion.
* Sudan will expand its use of gold exports to cover imports of essential goods, as it embarks on a new 2022 budget without foreign aid during an economic downturn after a coup.
* Spot silver fell 0.8% to $23.77 an ounce. Palladium lost 0.6% to $2,134.69 and platinum fell 0.7% to $1,019.48.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0900 Germany Ifo Business Climate New 0900 Germany Ifo Curr Conditions New 0900 Germany Ifo Expectations New 1500 US Consumer Confidence
