Gold eases from one-month high on firmer dollar, profit-taking

Gold prices eased on Tuesday from their highest level in more than a month, pressured by profit-taking and a slight rebound in the dollar, while investors looked for progress in trade talks ahead of an August 1 deadline.

Spot gold was down 0.3% at $3,384.49 per ounce, as of 0656 GMT. Earlier in the session, bullion hit its highest level since June 17.

U.S. gold futures also slipped 0.3% to $3,397. "Gold's move on the upside has been pretty much supported by positive technicals and as well as reinforced by a broad base of dollar weakness," OANDA senior market analyst Kelvin Wong said.

The dollar index edged 0.1% higher after falling to a more than one-week low on Monday, making greenback-priced gold more expensive for other currency holders.

The European Union is exploring a broader set of possible countermeasures against the United States as prospects for an acceptable trade agreement with Washington fade, according to EU diplomats. U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened 30% duties on imports from Europe if no agreement is signed before the August 1 deadline.

"There could be a possibility that U.S. and the respective trading partners may not agree to the terms and condition and that potentially could see a bit of uncertainty and there could be some hedging activities by market participants going forward," Wong said. Also on radar, the European Central Bank is expected to hold interest rates steady at 2.0% following a string of cuts at the end of its policy meeting on July 24. The U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting is scheduled for next week.

Traders are pricing about a 59% chance of a rate cut by the Fed in September, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Gold tends to perform well in a low-interest-rate environment.

Spot silver dipped 0.1% to $38.86 per ounce, platinum added 0.6% to $1,447.53 and palladium gained 0.2% to $1,266.95.