2020.12.0819:08:00UTC+00Gold Futures Settle Higher For 2nd Straight Day

Gold futures settled higher on Tuesday, gaining for a second straight day, as bond yields fell. Rising hopes about a coronavirus relief package in the U.S. contributed as well to the yellow metal's uptick.

The continued surge in coronavirus cases and increasing number of hospitalizations in the U.S. boosted hopes for a U.S. pandemic stimulus.

The U.S. Congress is expected to vote this week on a one-week stopgap funding bill to give negotiators more time to strike a compromise.

U.S. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said there were signs of progress in talks on a bipartisan bill.

The dollar's uptick limited gold's gains. The dollar index rose to 91.02 and was last seen at 90.97, up 0.2% from previous close.

Gold futures for February ended up $8.90 or about 0.5% at $1,874.90 an ounce, the highest settlement in two weeks. Gold futures had gained about 1.4% in the previous session.

Silver futures for March ended lower by $0.058 or 0.2% at $24.736 an ounce.

Copper futures for March settled at $3.4990 per pound, down $0.0175 or 0.5% from previous close.

Traders were also looking ahead to the European Central Bank's monetary policy meeting on Thursday.

In Japan, the country's Cabinet approved today an additional economic package worth 73.6 trillion yen ($707 billion) including private funds to help ease the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Germany is looking to impose tougher restrictions on movement after a nationwide partial shutdown made little impact on the spread of the disease. The French government is likely to delay unwinding some Covid lockdown restrictions next week amid signs the country will miss a coronavirus goal set by President Emmanuel Macron.