Gold Price Forecast: Bears keeping the breakout attempts in check

• Gold bears are moving in at resistance with support $1,930s eyed. 
• A break of $1,950 opens risk to $1,970 and blue skies there after. 
• Will XAU/USD continue to ignore rising US yields?

The gold price is under pressure in late Asian trade with XAU/USD falling some 0.2% into the low $1,940s from a high of $1,950 and 4-hour resistance.

However, as the chart below illustrates, so long as the bulls commit at this juncture, there will be prospects of a break higher in the coming days. 

Meanwhile, the day started out with the US dollar on the back foot, and the correction in gold is a consequence of the greenback bounding back to close the bearish gap, as measured by the DXY index.

The drop in the US dollar was due to a relief rally in the euro as the incumbent French president Emmanuel Macron led first-round voting in the French presidential election.

French elections: Macron leads 54% to le Pen 46%, EUR likes

Looking ahead to the week, there could be more in the pipeline from the euro given the European Central Bank meeting. As a consequence, the US dollar could be driven on ECB related flows that would likely transpire into a driver for the gold price as well. 

ECB tightening expectations remain heightened, however, as the analysts at Brown Brothers point out, the ECB is crafting a crisis tool that would be activated if eurozone bond yields jump. ''This is worth keeping an eye on as any willingness to renew some form of QE should be considered euro-negative.''

On the other side of the Atlantic, the narrative is highly hawkish surrounding the Federal Reserve, yet the price of gold remains stuck in a stubborn.

''All the shorts have been wiped out and ETF inflows have slowed as the fear trade subsides. In fact, the dry-powder analysis highlights the breadth of traders short in gold is nearing its smallest levels on record,'' analysts at TD Securities explained.

Gold technical analysis

The price is heading lower with $1,930s eyed as a supporting area.  A break of $1,950 opens risk to $1,970.