LONDON: Gold prices rose on Monday as mounting inflationary pressures and concerns around Ukraine kept the precious metal in demand, while investors await more data this week to weigh how aggressively the US Federal Reserve will hike interest rates. Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,811 per ounce by 1048 GMT, after hitting its highest since Jan. 27 at $1,814.91 earlier in the session. US gold futures gained 0.2% to $1,811.70.

“Gold’s been a brilliant hedge this past month against falling stocks and rising bond yields so that’s adding to the underlying positive case for gold right now,” said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen, adding that Friday’s strong US jobs report was another challenge which gold surpassed really well.

“It’s a combination of inflation obviously not being transitory ... Another issue that we cannot really ignore is the geopolitical risks that are currently in the market with regards to Russia and Ukraine.”

Benchmark 10-year US Treasury yields stayed close to their highest levels since December 2019 hit on Friday after US employment report showed nonfarm payrolls jumped by 467,000 jobs last month, boosting Fed’s hawkish policy stance.

Investors now await the January US inflation figures due on Thursday for further cues on US rate hikes.

While gold is considered a hedge against inflation and geopolitical risks, rate hikes would raise the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion.

The threat of war in Ukraine and persistent inflation compounded by rising oil prices drives gold upside while an increasingly hawkish Fed after US jobs data adds to the rising opportunity cost of holding gold, said DailyFX analyst Warren Venketas.

“Gold price action is very much in limbo as markets await a fundamental catalyst for some directional bias.”

Elsewhere, silver jumped 1% to $22.72 per ounce, platinum declined 1.3% to $1,010.58, and palladium fell 1.7% to $2,245.29.