Gold in search of a firm direction, stuck in a range ahead of US data/Powell

Gold lacked any firm directional bias and seesawed between tepid gains/minor losses through the mid-European session on Tuesday.

Currently hovering around the $1414-13 region, the commodity remained well within the previous session's broader trading range, awaiting fresh catalyst from the Fed Chair Jerome Powell's scheduled speech.

Despite Monday's mostly upbeat macro releases from China and the US, firming market expectations that the Fed will eventually cut interest rates later this July continued lending some support to the non-yielding yellow metal.

However, a combination of forces - a mildly positive mood around equities and a goodish pickup in the US Dollar demand, offset the positive factor and capped any meaningful up-move for the dollar-denominated commodity.

The greenback gained some positive traction on Tuesday and was being supported by a fresh wave of selling around the British Pound, which remained depressed amid persistent Brexit-related uncertainties.

Moving ahead, Tuesday's US economic docket - featuring the release of monthly retail sales figures, will be looked upon for some short-term trading impetus ahead of Powell's possible comments on the policy outlook.

Technical levels to watch