Gold prices gained on Wednesday in Asia amid global trade worries.
Gold futures for August delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange last traded at $1,429.75 a troy ounce by 1:21 AM ET (05:21 GMT), up 1.5%.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping agreed to resume trade talks this week, but traders are worried a deal will not happen in the near future after White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said trade talks are heading in the right direction but it will take time to make the right deal.
Trump stoked trade tensions with China on Tuesday, warning that any trade deal would need to be “somewhat tilted” in favor of the U.S.
Sentiment on trade took a further knock after the U.S. proposed $4 billion on European Union goods and added olives, Italian cheese and Scotch whiskey to a list of goods in line for tariffs.
The European Union is reportedly preparing retaliation but is open to talks with Washington.
The yellow metal has also been propped up by expectations for looser monetary policy from central banks, with the Federal Reserve widely expected to cut rates this month.
Trump said overnight that he is planning to nominate Judy Shelton, an economic adviser to the president during his 2016 campaign, to the Federal Reserve’s board.
In an interview with CNBC last month, Shelton said she would lowest interest rate to 0% within two years of time if she is appointed.
In the past, Trump has opening criticised current Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell and said the central bank has “gone crazy” for raising interest rates, rather than cutting them.
