28.11.202318:10:00UTC+00Gold Futures Settle At 6-month High As Dollar Weakens

Gold futures settled notably higher on Tuesday as the dollar tumbled amid speculation the Federal Reserve will start reducing interest rates from the middle of next year.

The dollar index fell to 102.61 before recovering to 102.84, but was still down more than 0.3% from the previous close.

Gold futures for February ended up $27.20 at $2,060.20 an ounce.

Silver futures for December ended higher by $0.254 at $24.935 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $3.8000 per pound, gaining $0.0420.

On Thursday, the Commerce Department is due to release its report on personal income and spending in the month of October.

The report includes readings on inflation said to be preferred by the Federal Reserve and could impact the outlook for interest rates.

Recent data has generated optimism the Fed is done raising rates, leading to strength on Wall Street that has lifted the major averages to their best levels in over three months in recent sessions.

Reports on weekly jobless claims, pending home sales and manufacturing activity may also attract attention along with the Fed's Beige Book as well as remarks by Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

In U.S. economic news, the Conference Board released a report showing a rebound in U.S. consumer confidence in the month of November.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index rose to 102.0 in November from a downwardly revised 99.1 in October. The increase came following three straight monthly declines.

Economists had expected the consumer confidence index to edge down to 101.5 from the 102.6 originally reported for the previous month.