Gold Price Forecast: XAUUSD jumps to fresh daily high, bulls await move beyond 200-DMA

• Gold attracted some dip-buying in the vicinity of the weekly low and shot to a fresh daily high.
• The ongoing slide in the US bond yields capped the USD and offered support to the commodity.
• Hawkish Fed expectations might hold back bulls from placing aggressive bets around the metal.

Gold reversed an intraday slide to the $1,824 area, back closer to the weekly low touched the previous day and shot to a fresh daily high during the early North American session. The XAUUSD was last seen trading, around the $1,840-$1845 region, up 0.25% for the day, with bulls still awaiting a sustained move beyond the very important 200-day SMA.

The ongoing steep decline in the US Treasury bond yields forced the US dollar to trim a part of its intraday gains, which, in turn, offered support to the dollar-denominated commodity. That said, a combination of factors held back bulls from placing aggressive bets and kept a lid on any meaningful intraday upside for gold, for the time being.

A turnaround in the global risk sentiment - as depicted by a generally positive tone around the equity markets - acted as a headwind for the safe-haven precious metal. Apart from this, expectations that the Fed would tighten its monetary policy at a faster pace to curb soaring inflation might also contribute to capping gains for the non-yielding gold.

The worsening global economic outlook, however, might continue to lend support to the XAUUSD and help limit any meaningful decline. Investors remain concerned that a more aggressive move by major central banks would pose challenges to the global economic recovery. Adding to this, Thursday's disappointing Eurozone PMIs further fueled fears about a possible recession.

The mixed fundamental backdrop warrants caution before positioning for any firm near-term direction for gold prices. This makes it prudent to wait for strong follow-through buying beyond the overnight swing high, around the $1,847-$1,848 region, to support prospects for additional near-term gains, possibly towards the $1,870-$1,880 supply zone.

Technical levels to watch