Mubasher: Gold prices inched up on Monday, having hit a three-month trough in the preceding session, on the return of worries over the trade dispute between the US and China and a global economic slowdown, according to Reuters.

By 7:08 am GMT, spot gold rose by 0.31% to $1,463.58 per ounce, while US gold futures edged up by 0.12% to $1,464.60 per ounce.

“Gold prices are pretty low now and investors are taking this opportunity to take positions in the safe-haven metal as there is still an upside to it, considering the concerns over the trade war and global economy,” Singapore-based dealer GoldSilver Central managing director Brian Lan was quoted by Reuters.

President Donald Trump said in the weekend that trade talks with Beijing with going “very nicely,” but a deal with China will only be inked, if it is the right one for the US.

Earlier last week, China’s Commerce Ministry said that Washington and Beijing agreed to roll back tariffs in tranches as part of the first phase of a trade pact, but later on President Trump denied such agreement.

 The trade conflict between the world’s two biggest economies dragged financial markets down and fanned fears of a global slowdown, boosting the yellow metal 14% higher this year alone.

More worries stoked after the Chinese producer price index (PPI), a key barometer of corporate profitability, dropped by 1.6% year-on-year last October, the sharpest drop since July 2016.

Asian equities pared gains on Monday as uncertainty continued to loom over whether the US and China could end their crippling trade conflict.