Gold futures inch higher ahead of Greece bailout talks

Investing.com - Investing.com - Gold inched up modestly in cautious trade on Wednesday, as Greece's Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis was to meet with other finance ministers of the euro zone later in the day to discuss a solution to Greece's bailout program.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for April delivery tacked on $1.70, or 0.14%, to trade at $1,233.90 a troy ounce during U.S. morning hours.
Prices held in a range between $1,232.20 and $1,238.70. A day earlier, gold lost $9.30, or 0.75%, to settle at $1,232.20.
Futures were likely to find support at $1,228.20, the low from February 6, and resistance at $1,245.90, the high from February 10.
Also on the Comex, silver futures for March delivery picked up 4.5 cents, or 0.27%, to trade at $16.91 a troy ounce. Silver slumped 19.7 cents, or 1.15%, on Tuesday to end at $16.87.
Greece's current bailout is due to expire on February 28 and the new Greek government does not want it extended, fuelling concerns that a conflict with international creditors could trigger the country's exit from the euro zone.
Athens was expected to ask for a bridge loan to cover its funding needs until September, and to also propose new economic reforms to replace 30% of its massive bailout deal.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras's government won a confidence vote on Tuesday evening and reiterated that he will deliver on pre-election pledges to roll back austerity measures and reject an international bailout extension.
Athens main stock index tumbled more than 4%, while the yield on Greek 10-Year bonds rose sharply to trade near the 11%-level.
Meanwhile, ongoing expectations for the Federal Reserve to start raising interest rates by mid-2015 capped gains.
Prices have been under pressure in recent sessions amid the growing possibility of an earlier Fed rate hike, following last week's robust U.S. jobs report, which saw market players bring forward expectations for the first rate increase to June.
Expectations of higher borrowing rates going forward is considered bearish for gold, as the precious metal struggles to compete with yield-bearing assets when rates are on the rise.
Elsewhere in metals trading, copper for March delivery tacked on 0.8 cents, or 0.33%, to trade at $2.560 a pound.
Prices were supported amid speculation of further monetary easing from the People's Bank of China following Tuesday's lower-than-expected inflation data.
The Asian nation is the world's largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.