Gold prices were little changed in early trade today as North American markets return from the holiday weekend. The precious metal continues to hold within the past month’s trading range of $2,000 to $2,050 per ounce.

The price of spot gold (XAU/USD) was trading at £$2,021 per ounce as of 07:30 GMT, testing yesterday’s highs. Prices had fallen below $2,000 last week before recovering sharply over recent sessions.

Traders have scaled back expectations for early Fed rate cuts following persistent inflation and hawkish policymaker rhetoric. This has reduced support for non-yielding gold.

While the precious metal remains stuck in a range, clearer dovish signals from the central bank may be required to break the impasse.