Gold slips to £3,114 an ounce, a seven-week low, as oil keeps Fed hike bets alive

Gold was trading at around £3,113.70 a troy ounce on Tuesday, according to The Royal Mint, or roughly £100 a gram before dealer costs. That is down from about £3,185 at Monday's open and leaves the metal near its lowest level since early August. In dollar terms, Trading Economics reports that gold plunged about 4 per cent on Monday before steadying near $4,150 today, a modest bounce of under 1 per cent.

The pressure is coming from oil and interest rates. Brent crude is holding around $105 a barrel as doubts grow over a US-Iran deal, and US Treasury yields have climbed to fresh multi-year highs. Markets now price roughly a 70 per cent chance of another Federal Reserve rate rise in October. Gold pays no interest, so higher rates make cash and bonds look more rewarding by comparison.

Two data releases could set the next move: US PCE inflation figures on Wednesday and the September jobs report on Friday. Even after the slide, gold is still about 7.5 per cent higher than a year ago, though down around 6.6 per cent over the past month.

For UK buyers, a lower spot price cuts the metal value of a coin or bar, but premiums and delivery charges still vary between dealers. Investment gold is VAT free, so comparing the all-in price, spot plus premium plus fees, is the best way to find value. This is market information, not financial advice.