GOLD HOLDS STEADY AS MARKETS AWAIT US CPI DATA

• Gold price hovers around $2,180.60, steadying as traders anticipate February's CPI release.
• Core inflation expectations set to influence the US Dollar and potentially bolster Gold's position.
• Following Powell's testimony, Gold’s near breakthrough to $2,200 underlined XAU’s price sensitivity to Fed policy and inflation trends.

Gold prices were virtually unchanged late in the North American session with traders bracing for the release of February’s US Consumer Price Index (CPI) data, which is estimated to stay unchanged for headline figures. Core data is foreseen cooling down, which would weigh on the US Dollar and boost XAU/USD. At the time of writing, Gold price trades at $2,180.60, almost flat.

Last week, Gold price printed an all-time high of $2,195.15, shy of cracking the $2,200 figure following US Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell's testimony at the US Congress, in which he acknowledged that inflation is heading lower. Powell noted that eventually, the Fed would begin to ease policy but emphasized that the central bank remains data-dependent. Despite saying the US central bank is close to feeling confident that inflation is edging lower, the Fed Chair said they’re in no rush to cut borrowing costs.