2023.01.3018:10:00UTC+00Gold Futures Settle Lower For 3rd Straight Session

Gold prices drifted lower on Monday as the dollar firmed against other major currencies as markets looked ahead to the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement, due on Wednesday.

The dollar index, which was down at 101.66 in the Asian session, gained in strength as the session progressed and was up at 102.15, gaining about 0.25%.

Gold futures for April ended lower by $6.40 or about 0.3% at $1,939.20 an ounce.

Silver futures for March ended up $0.111 at $23.733 an ounce, while Copper futures for March settled at $4.2020 per pound, down $0.0205 from the previous close.

Analysts expecting the U.S. central bank to slow the pace of interest rate hikes to 25 basis points. The focus will be on the accompanying statement to see if there are chances of a soft landing for the economy.

Data on non-farm payrolls for the month of December, and reports on consumer confidence and manufacturing and services sector activity are also due this week.

The European Central Bank and the Bank of England are also scheduled to announce their interest rate decisions this week. The banks are widely expected to raise rates by 50 basis points.