Gold rose toward $3,370 per ounce on Thursday, as escalating US-Iran tensions reignited safe-haven demand, while weaker-than-expected US consumer inflation data bolstered bets of Federal Reserve rate cuts. The US government ordered the departure of embassy staff from Baghdad after Iran threatened to attack US bases if talks over its nuclear program fall through. Meanwhile, markets are now pricing in a 50bps rate cut from the Fed by the end of the year, with traders closely watching the PPI data data due later today for further clues ahead of the US central bank’s policy meeting next week. On the trade front, Trump announced on Wednesday that a deal had been reached to revive a fragile truce in the US-China trade war after American and Chinese negotiators agreed on a framework covering tariff rates. He also signaled a willingness to extend the July 8 deadline for finalizing talks with trading partners before higher US tariffs are imposed.