FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold was little changed at $1,770.46 an ounce, 0008 GMT.
* US gold futures were flat at $1,783.10.
* Fed funds futures now forecast a 91% chance of a 50 basis point (bp) rate hike at the December meeting.
* The Fed meeting is scheduled for December 13-14.
* High interest rates have weighed on gold’s traditional status as a hedge against inflation and other uncertainties this year, as they translate into a higher opportunity cost of holding the metal not productive.
* SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.3% to 906.06 tonnes on Tuesday.
* The U.S. trade deficit widened sharply in October as slowing global demand and a strong dollar pushed goods exports to a seven-month low, suggesting trade could dampen economic growth this quarter if the trend persists.
* Meanwhile, the European Central Bank will need to raise interest rates several times to rein in price pressures, even though headline inflation is now near its peak, the ECB’s chief economist said on Tuesday , Philip Lane, at the Milano Finanza.
* Spot silver fell 0.1% to $22.13, platinum was flat at $988.42 and palladium was flat at $1,848.48.
