Mumbai/IBNS: Gold prices edged higher in the domestic futures market on Thursday (Oct. 10) morning, ahead of key US inflation data that could shape the Federal Reserve’s future monetary policy decisions.

The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September is set to be released on Thursday (Oct. 10), followed by the Producer Price Index (PPI) data on Friday (Oct. 11).

The anticipation of further interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve in the coming months, along with ongoing geopolitical tensions, has been supporting the rise in gold prices.

However, recent US economic data has dampened expectations of aggressive rate cuts.

According to a Reuters report, markets now predict an 80 percent chance of a 25-basis-point rate cut by the Fed in November.

The minutes from the Fed's September meeting, released on Wednesday (Oct. 9), revealed that a "substantial majority" of officials were in favor of starting with a 50 bps rate cut.

However, they agreed that future decisions would depend on incoming data.

The US CPI report will be a critical factor in determining the Fed's next steps.

Analysts remain optimistic about gold's prospects due to ongoing tensions in the Middle East and the Federal Reserve’s monetary easing cycle.

Gold typically performs well during periods of low interest rates and heightened economic or geopolitical uncertainty.

As of 9:30 am on Thursday, MCX (Multi Commodity Exchange) Gold for December 5 expiry was trading up by 0.08 percent at Rs 74,997 per 10 grams.

Experts anticipate that gold prices will fluctuate throughout the session in response to US inflation data, with the dollar's movements and developments regarding tensions between Israel and Iran also expected to impact the market.