Gold steadied on Wednesday just above a five-week low touched in the last session as the dollar retreated slightly and stocks edged lower, with investors awaiting further signals on the health of the global economy.
Spot gold was little changed at $1,286.61 per ounce as of 11:52 a.m. EST (1652 GMT), trading in a narrow $7 range. US gold futures were up 0.2 percent at $1,287.50 per ounce.
"After the massive sell-off (in gold) it is not surprising to see the prices stabilize given the cautious tone on the equity market especially today," said Commerzbank analyst Eugen Weinberg.
Gold hit a low of $1,280.70 on Tuesday, its weakest level since Jan. 25, with prices down more than 4 percent since hitting a 10-month peak on Feb. 20.
"Gold has found a bid and is starting to stabilize while we are waiting for the ECB pronouncement tomorrow," said George Gero, managing director at RBC Wealth Management.
Elsewhere, palladium rose 0.5 percent to $1,523.46 per ounce.
Spot silver declined half a percent to $15.05 per ounce, and hit $15, its lowest level since Dec. 27, earlier in the session. Platinum dipped 1.4 percent to $824.78.
The largest surplus since at least 2013 is projected for the global platinum market this year, the World Platinum Investment Council said, forecasting an oversupply of 680,000 ounces in 2019 after a surplus of 645,000 ounces last year.