Gold remained bullish and reached a new all-time high of $3,055 after Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Jerome Powell announced that interest rates would be maintained at the latest meeting.
At 8.45 am, gold prices were at $3,052.53, up 0.15% since it opened in early trading Thursday in the Asian session.
The Fed decided to keep rates unchanged at a range of 4.25%-4.50% and acknowledged that labor market conditions remained strong but inflation had increased somewhat.
The Fed's economic forecast suggests that officials expect two rate cuts this year. The Fed funds rate is forecast to remain at 3.9%, unchanged from the December forecast.
Meanwhile, inflation and unemployment forecasts are forecast to rise.
The United States (US) economy is expected to slow below the 2% threshold, indicating that it has become somewhat fragile amid President Donald Trump's trade policies.
Turning to geopolitical developments, the war between Russia and Ukraine continues despite talks to reach a 30-day ceasefire from attacking energy facilities.
In addition, the Middle East conflict escalated with Israeli airstrikes killing 400 people on Tuesday.
