Gold Price Prediction: The XAU/USD pair flirts with a two-week high below $1,800 ahead of US PCE Inflation

Gold price (XAU/USD) oscillates near a two-week high in the vicinity of $1,780 on Thursday morning as buyers await critical US inflation data. Consequently, during the three-day upswing, the price of bullion advances to within a few minutes of the previous multi-day high.

Notably, dovish statements from Federal Reserve (Fed) officials, particularly Chairman Jerome Powell, combined with weaker US employment-related data to drive the Gold price higher the day before. In the same vein, the virus-driven activity limitations in China have loosened as the dragon kingdom reported three consecutive days of dropping daily infections after setting a new record high.

However, a recent increase in US inflation expectations, as indicated by the 10-year and 5-year breakeven inflation rates as reported by the St. Louis Federal Reserve (FRED) data, should have also investigated the metal's recent upward movement. Additionally challenging the XAU/USD bulls could be Jake Sullivan's pessimistic views, which signal that the Sino-American optimists face new obstacles. "The United States views China as a growing strategic danger," the official stated.

As a reflection of the market's sentiment, S&P 500 Futures post modest gains, while Asia-Pacific equities follow Wall Street's upward trend. In addition, US 10-year Treasury bond yields continue under pressure around 3.62 percent a day after hitting a two-month low.

Janet Yellen, secretary of the US Treasury, has stated that the US economy will likely be able to accomplish a so-called "soft landing," in which inflation decreases without triggering a severe recession. Gold buyers remain optimistic as they await the Fed's favored inflation indicator, the US Core Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) Price Index for October, which is anticipated to be 5.0% YoY versus 5.1% before.

In addition, the US ISM Manufacturing PMI for November, which is anticipated to be 49.8 compared to 50.2 in October, as well as news about China and comments from the Fed's second-tier policymakers will be crucial.