(Bloomberg) -- Gold rose after US inflation data came in slightly cooler than expected, taking pressure off the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates again.

The consumer price index advanced by a below-forecast 4.9% in April from a year earlier, a government report showed. Treasury yields dropped following the print, boosting gold, which climbed as much as 0.7%.

The numbers may give the US central bank room to pause rate hikes as it monitors the performance of the economy. Gold has been trading above $2,000 an ounce for most of this month on bets for more policy loosening, though it pulled back Friday after jobs data pointed to persistent inflationary pressures.

Higher interest rates tend to hurt non-yielding gold. Investors are also watching a stalemate over the US debt ceiling, which threatens to sow chaos in financial markets and undermine the dollar’s credibility.

Spot gold edged up 0.2% to $2,037.78 an ounce as of 2:19 p.m. in London. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index declined 0.3%. Silver, platinum and palladium all gained.

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