Gold price gains after Fed’s Waller reiterates call for July rate cut

Gold gained after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller hinted that he would dissent if his colleagues vote to hold interest rates steady at their July meeting, making his case for a rate cut to support the labor market.

While it’s important not to dissent regularly, officials should take the step “if you make it very clear you think at this moment in time this is an important thing to do,” Waller said Friday in a Bloomberg TV interview.

Bond yields and the dollar pushed lower after Waller’s comments, helping lift bullion as much as 0.7%. The precious metal typically benefits in a lower rate environment as it pays no interest.

Waller’s remarks came as pressure is mounting from US President Donald Trump for Fed officials to lower borrowing costs.

Still, swap traders are assigning near-zero odds of a reduction at the US central bank’s meeting on July 30. They price in about 45 basis points of easing by year-end, down from more than 65 basis points at the start of the month. Most of the shift occurred in response to stronger-than-anticipated June employment data released July 3.

Meanwhile, data on Friday showed consumers expect prices to rise at an annual rate of 4.4% over the next year, down from 5% in the prior month and the lowest since February.

Gold has climbed more than a quarter this year, with geopolitical tensions and concerns about dollar-denominated assets sparking flight to the haven asset. The precious metal has been trading within a tight range over the past few months, as investors wait for a clearer sense on US talks with a raft of trade partners, the path for rate cuts and the impact of tariffs on the global economy.

Gold rose 0.4% to $3,353.59 an ounce at 11:19 a.m. in New York. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dipped 0.3%. Silver rose while palladium and platinum slipped.

(By Yvonne Yue Li)