1st LD Writethru: Gold up on weaker U.S. dollar

Gold futures on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose on Tuesday as the U.S. dollar showed weakness.

The most active gold contract for June delivery rose 3.2 U.S. dollars, or 0.26 percent, to settle at 1,243.40 dollars per ounce.

Gold was given support on Tuesday as the U.S. Dollar Index fell by 0.37 to 94.44 as of 17:30 GMT. The index is a measure of the dollar against a basket of major currencies. Gold and the dollar typically move in opposite directions, which means if the dollar goes up, gold futures will fall as gold, measured by the dollar, becomes more expensive for investors.

Tuesday marks the beginning of the April Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. Analysts believe that it is unlikely that the Fed will raise rates during this meeting, but believe that the Fed will provide more hints to investors on the timing of a rate hike. After March's FOMC meeting, traders believe that the Fed may raise rates from 0.50 to 0.75 during the July FOMC meeting. According to the CMEGroup' s Fedwatch tool, the current implied probability of a hike from 0.50 to 0.75 is at 23 percent at the June 2016 meeting, and 37 percent at the July 2016 meeting.

A report released by the U.S. Census Department Tuesday showed durable goods orders as-expected, with the core reading of new orders increasing to 0.8 percent. Analysts note that while this was within expectations, there was a big gain for defense orders, which helped offset other weakness.

Traders are expecting the international trade in goods report and FOMC meeting announcement on Wednesday, gross domestic product report on Thursday, and personal income and outlays on Friday.

Silver for May delivery added 10.1 cents, or 0.59 percent, to close at 17.11 dollars per ounce. Platinum for July delivery rose 1.6 dollars, or 0.16 percent, to close at 1,020.10 dollars per ounce. Enditem