Gold eases after 3-week gain, investors await Fed meet

Reuters, (29/7) -- Gold slipped on Monday, as investors took profits after three weeks of gains and turned their attention to a U.S. Federal Reserve policy meeting later this week that is widely expected to reaffirm its near-zero interest rate stance. Spot gold steadied 0.25 percent lower at $1,329.90 an ounce by 3:45 p.m. EDT (1945 GMT). Last week, the precious metal regained the $1,300 level for the first time in a month. It rose 9 percent over the last three weeks. Meanwhile, U.S. gold futures for August settled $6.90 higher at $1,328.40 an ounce, up 0.52 percent. The Fed's policy setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) begins its two-day meeting on Tuesday and is expected to release its latest statement on Wednesday afternoon. The European Central Bank and the Bank of England also meet this week and are expected to repeat or refine their previous guidance that borrowing costs would remain extraordinarily low as long as growth is sub-par and inflation is not a threat. The dollar, which also pressured gold, rebounded from a five-week low against a basket of major currencies as investors positioned ahead of key U.S. economic data and global central bank policy meetings this week. Economists polled by Reuters forecast, on average, July payrolls growth of 184,000, a healthy pace that could induce talk the Fed will taper its bond purchases sooner rather than later. If so, gold prices will likely suffer.