Investing.com - Gold prices were little changed on Wednesday, as investors looked ahead to a policy statement by the Federal Reserve that will shed fresh light on its interest rate plans for the rest of the year.
Comex gold futures inched up $1.05, or less than 0.1%, to $1,307.65 a troy ounce by 8:40AM ET (12:40 GMT).
Meanwhile, spot gold was trading at $1,307.90 per ounce, up $1.42, or 0.1%.
The Fed is widely expected to keep rates steady later in the day, putting the main market focus on its policymakers' rate projections for the next few years. The Fed's December projection implied two hikes this year, but that is widely expected to be cut to a single increase.
The U.S. central bank is also expected to lay out a plan to stop shrinking its $4 trillion balance sheet, or so-called quantitative tightening. Many policymakers have suggested the Fed is likely to conclude the process and stabilize its bond holdings by the end of this year.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell is due to hold a press conference at 2:30PM ET (18:30 GMT), half an hour after the release of the policy statement.
"I think market consensus centers around an end in September but we expect the Fed to end its balance sheet rolloff in June, at around $3.85 trillion, based on our calculations on the amount of excess reserves the Fed will need," said Shuji Shirota, head of macroeconomic strategy at HSBC Securities in Tokyo.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, was at 95.86, not far from Tuesday's two-and-a-half-week low of 95.73.
In other metals trading, palladium prices rose to an all-time high for the second straight session as the supply outlook tightened further.
Spot palladium was up 0.4% at $1,594.99 an ounce, having hit a record high of $1,603.42 earlier in the session.
“The story remains the same (for palladium) as long as there is tight supply,” said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen. “There are also stories of Russians potentially cutting supply that is adding to a very bullish scenario.”
The trade and industry ministry of Russia, a major producer of the autocatalyst metal, is contemplating a temporary ban on the export of precious metal scrap and tailings from May 1 to Oct. 31 this year.
Elsewhere, silver futures dipped 1.5 cents, or about 0.1%, to trade at $15.35 a troy ounce, while platinum gained 0.4% to $855.95 an ounce.
-- Reuters contributed to this report