The US dollar surged to its highest level in over a month due to concerns about China's economy, making gold more expensive for foreign buyers, while benchmark 10-year bond yields rose. Senior analyst Ricardo Evangelista of ActivTrades said, "With consumer prices and producer prices slightly higher than expected last weekend, some certainty about the end of the Fed's interest rate hike cycle has turned to smoke."
In July, US consumer prices rose moderately while producer prices increased less than expected, easing inflation pressure that could convince the Fed to keep interest rates unchanged next month. Higher interest rates and bond yields increase the opportunity cost of holding non-interest-bearing gold. Markets are awaiting US retail sales figures on Tuesday, followed by the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting in July on Wednesday.