Gold saw a slight uptick on Wednesday, fueled by dip-buying, after a drop of more than 2% in the prior session attributed to progress in U.S.-Iran negotiations. Furthermore, quiet trading linked to the Lunar New Year celebrations throughout Asia has put downward pressure on prices. Spot gold rose by 0.2% to $4,886.69 per ounce as of 0110, after a drop of over 2% that had pushed it to a more than one-week low on Tuesday.

U.S. gold futures for April delivery held steady at $4,904.50. The dollar held steady throughout the day, as geopolitical uncertainties continued to create tension in the markets. Investors kept a close eye on the upcoming minutes from the Federal Reserve’s January meeting, looking for clues about possible future rate cuts. An appreciation of the dollar raises the cost of gold priced in dollars for those holding other currencies. The markets in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea are currently closed for the Lunar New Year holidays. Traders anticipate that this closure will lead to lower trading volumes and could cause heightened volatility.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee indicated on Tuesday that the Federal Reserve might sanction “several more” rate cuts this year, contingent upon inflation continuing its descent towards the central bank’s 2% target. He characterized a recent lackluster consumer price report as concealing robust increases in service prices. Markets currently expect three 25-basis-point cuts in the Fed rate this year, based on CME’s FedWatch Tool. Non-yielding bullion usually does well in low-interest-rate environments. Meanwhile, Iran and the U.S. reached an understanding on Tuesday concerning important “guiding principles” in talks aimed at resolving their long-standing nuclear disagreement; however, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi stressed that this does not mean a deal is imminent.

Meanwhile, negotiators from Ukraine and Russia wrapped up the first of two days of U.S.-mediated peace talks in Geneva on Tuesday, with U.S. President Donald Trump encouraging Kyiv to accelerate efforts to finalize a deal to resolve the four-year conflict. Spot silver fell by 0.8% to $72.86 per ounce, after a drop of over 4% in the prior session. Spot platinum increased by 0.9% to $2,025.80 per ounce, while palladium rose by 0.5% to $1,690.54.