Gold prices stay steady below $2,000 as bulls bet on a Fed pause

So far in July, the precious metal has gained about $80. This is because falling inflation around the world has raised chances that central banks will pull back.

Gold prices didn't go up or down on Wednesday or early Thursday because bullion buyers were holding out hope that the Federal Reserve would stop raising interest rates so often. Prices per troy ounce stayed between $1,970 and $1,985 for the last 8 weeks.

When it comes to XAUUSD to go up. Recent data on retail sales has made the Fed's predictions for a soft landing even better. This is good news for the economy. In other words, a slow move away from rate hikes without causing a painful drop.

And finally, it looks like the push by central banks around the world to raise interest rates is working. Europe's inflation in June was 5.5%, which was about what was expected. This was down from 6.1% in May. In the UK, the growth of consumer prices dropped from 8.7% in May to 7.9% in June. All of this gave people hope that the pressure on interest rates might finally ease.