By Gina Lee
Investing.com – Gold was down on Tuesday morning in Asia. Investors were taking a risk-averse stance, however, ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy decision and China Evergrande Group’s ongoing debt crisis.
Gold futures inched down 0.08% to $1,762.35 by 12:14 AM ET (4:14 AM GMT). However, the yellow metal reversed some losses from Monday, when it hit an over one-month low.
China Evergrande’s debt crisis continues on investors’ radars as an $83.5 million interest payment for its March 2022 bond is due on Thursday and a second $47.5 million interest payment for its March 2024 notes is due not long afterward on Sep. 29.
With around $300 billion in liabilities, it remains to be seen whether the developer can make good on the payments.
Investors also await clues on the Fed’s timetable to begin asset tapering and hike interest rates in the central bank’s policy decision, due to be handed down later in the day.
Meanwhile, the volume of the European Central Bank (ECB)’s bond purchases is becoming “less important” as the economic outlook improves and the money-printing scheme becomes a tool for guiding rate expectations, ECB board member Isabel Schnabel said on Monday.
The Bank of Japan and Bank of England will hand down their respective policy decisions on Wednesday and Thursday.
In other precious metals, silver inched up 0.1% after hitting a more-than-nine-month low of $22.01 during the previous session. Palladium climbed 0.6% to $1,896.30 after slumping to its lowest level since June 2020 on Monday, and platinum rose 0.5% to $915.05 after hitting a 10-month low on Monday.