Gold edges higher as dollar dips, US fiscal worries mount

Gold prices edged up on Tuesday, supported by a weaker dollar and concerns over the U.S. fiscal outlook, while investors looked for further clarity on trade policy after U.S. President Donald Trump postponed a planned tariff hike on European goods.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was up 0.1% at $3,344.36 an ounce, as of 0047 GMT.

* U.S. gold futures fell 0.6% to $3,344.60. * The dollar index eased 0.3% to hover near one-month low against its rivals, making greenback-priced gold more attractive for other currency holders.

* Trump backed away from his threat to impose 50% tariffs on imports from the European Union next month, restoring a July 9 deadline to allow for talks between Washington and the 27-nation bloc to produce a deal.

* The U.S. House of Representatives last week passed a version of Trump’s tax-cut bill that is calculated to add about $3.8 trillion to the federal government’s $36.2 trillion in debt over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. * China’s total gold imports via Hong Kong in April nearly tripled month-on-month, hitting their highest levels in more than a year, Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department data showed on Monday. * Trump said Vladimir Putin had “gone absolutely CRAZY” by unleashing a massive aerial attack on Ukraine and said he was weighing new sanctions on Moscow, though he also scolded Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

* Spot silver gained 0.4% to $33.47 an ounce, platinum was steady at $1,085.63 and palladium edged 0.1% lower to $986.75. DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0645 France CPI (EU Norm) Prelim MM, YY May 0645 France CPI Prelim MM, YY NSA May 1000 France Unemp Class-A SA April 1230 US Durable Goods April 1400 US Consumer Confidence May (Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)