Gold prices rose for a fourth day on Wednesday as expectations that the US government will enact the country's biggest tax reforms in 30 years held the dollar steady, reports Reuters.
Gold has risen more than 2.0 per cent from a five-month low of $1,235.92 on Dec 12, helped by a weakening dollar that makes gold cheaper for holders of other currencies.
However, market players are expected to be wary of taking new positions before the holiday season and prices are on track to register their narrowest trading range of any quarter in a decade in the last three months of 2017.
"Gold is coming up from a cyclical bottom. It's going to get quieter due to the upcoming holiday long-weekends," said Mun Chun Loh, director, Private Wealth at GoldSilver Central Pte Ltd in Singapore.
Spot gold was up 0.2 per cent at $1,264.52 an ounce at 1009 GMT while US gold futures were 0.3 per cent higher at $1,267.70 an ounce. The dollar has slipped from a one-month high earlier this month but was steady on Wednesday after the Republican-led US Senate approved a sweeping $1.5-trillion tax bill that could boost US economic growth.
Markets were however looking ahead to Friday by which time Congress must pass a temporary spending bill to avoid a government shutdown, said INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir.
