Gold prices held steady on Thursday, supported by uncertainties on the impact of Britain's departure from the European Union, US policy under President Donald Trump and French elections, but at the same time capped by a stronger dollar.

Spot gold was down 0.1 per cent at $1,251.22 per ounce, as of 0059 GMT. US gold futures eased 0.2 per cent to $1,250.9.

The dollar index was up 0.1 per cent at 100.07.

The dollar hovered near a one-week high against a basket of currencies on Thursday, buoyed by a weaker euro which sagged as prospects of the European Central Bank stepping away from monetary easing faded.

Brexit begins

Prime Minister Theresa May formally began Brexit - Britain's divorce from the European Union - on Wednesday, declaring there was no turning back and ushering in a tortuous exit process that will test the bloc's cohesion and pitch her country into the unknown.

Fed rate hike

The US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at least twice this year, and possibly up to four times - although that would require an improvement in fundamentals, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans had said on Wednesday.

With the US economy having now “largely attained” a full recovery from recession, the Fed can raise interest rates three or more times this year, a centrist Fed policymaker had said on Wednesday.

Wall Street has tempered its expectations for sweeping US tax cuts in the wake of President Donald Trump's stinging healthcare defeat, a move that could push investors to embrace cheaper global stocks after the heady US rally of recent months.

Former Prime Minister Manuel Valls had said on Wednesday he would vote for Emmanuel Macron in France's presidential election, becoming the biggest Socialist Party name to turn his back on its official candidate and support the centrist instead.

Ban on metal mining projects

El Salvador's Congress had on Wednesday approved a law prohibiting all metal mining projects to protect the poor Central American country's environment and natural resources.

The decoupling of a pipeline at Barrick Gold Corp's Veladero mine in Argentina on Tuesday posed no threat to the environment, the company had said in a statement on Wednesday while local authorities investigated the incident.

The rupture of the pipe carrying gold and silver solution was reported to the mining ministry of San Juan province late on Tuesday.

Polyus, Russia's largest gold producer, may hold a secondary share offering in Moscow in the near future, Yuri Soloviev, first deputy president of VTB bank, had said on Wednesday.

comment COMMENT NOW