2019.08.1207:05:00UTC+00Gold Edges Higher As Trade Worries Deepen

Gold prices rose on Monday to hold above the psychological $1,500 level as an escalating U.S.-China trade fight sparked fears that the trade war will trigger a recession.

Spot gold rose by half a percent to $1,504.93 per ounce, while U.S. gold futures were up 0.6 percent at $1,517.45 an ounce.

Gold prices jumped as much as 4 percent last week and are up around 17 percent this year, thanks to persisting concerns over U.S.-China trade war, dovish polices pursued by major global central banks and geopolitical tensions emanating front the Middle East.

U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday the U.S. is "not going to do business" with Chinese tech giant Huawei and that he is "not ready" to make a trade deal with China, suggesting the U.S. could skip the next round of trade talks in September.

Goldman Sachs cut its U.S. fourth-quarter growth forecast by 20 basis points to 1.8 percent over the weekend and said a U.S.-China trade deal was unlikely before the 2020 U.S. presidential election.

Market attention is now on the U.S. Federal Reserve annual symposium at Jackson Hole later in the week as investors seek greater clarity on the future path of interest rates.