Gold prices were flat early on Friday as the dollar steadied ahead of the G20 meet in Argentina this weekend, where US and Chinese leaders are scheduled to discuss trade matters after months of tensions.

Fundamentals

Spot gold was flat at $1,223.77 per ounce at 0126 GMT. Prices had hit a one-week high of $1,228.96 per ounce on Thursday. US gold futures were down 0.2 per cent at $1,221.6 per ounce. Palladium was up about 0.2 per cent at $1,183.20 per ounce after hitting a record high of $1,190 earlier in the session. The metal was on track to mark its best month since December 2017.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, traded marginally higher at 96.79 on Friday. Share markets ticked slightly lower in early Asian trade as investors looked to the G20 summit.

US-China trade prospects

US President Donald Trump had sent mixed signals on Thursday about the prospects for a trade deal with China, saying an agreement was close but he was not sure he wanted one, just as he left for Argentina for a meeting with President Xi Jinping.

US trade restrictions have hit a total of $369 billion of Chinese exports this year, much higher than the $278 billion of goods impacted by tariffs alone, a regular monitoring report of G20 trade restrictions said on Thursday.

Almost all Federal Reserve officials at their last meeting agreed another interest rate increase was “likely to be warranted fairly soon,” but also opened debate on when to pause further hikes and how to relay those plans to the public.

US President Donald Trump had on Thursday abruptly cancelled a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Argentina, registering his disapproval of Russia's treatment of Ukraine and casting new uncertainty over US-Russian ties.

A group of senior British lawmakers on Thursday put forward an amendment to block Prime Minister Theresa May's EU withdrawal deal and to rule out a no-deal Brexit when it comes before Parliament for a crucial vote next month.

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