Gold gains as hopes for US-Iran diplomacy cool oil price rally

Spot gold rose 0.5 percent to $4,023.56 per ounce as hopes for US-Iran diplomacy cooled an oil price rally, while Middle East tensions and Houthi threats of a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia kept crude markets on edge. Oil prices softened after recent escalation lifted crude to a one-month high on Monday, with rising expectations of interest rate hikes to counter persistent inflation. Silver gained 0.9 percent to $56.93, platinum fell 0.2 percent, and palladium rose 0.3 percent.