Gold holds above $1,600 on fears over economic
impact of virus
Gold prices held steady above the key $1,600 mark on Wednesday as an uptick in equities due to a drop in new virus cases was offset by fears of an economic fallout from the epidemic. Autocatalyst metal palladium, meanwhile, scaled yet another record peak on a sustained supply shortfall.Spot gold was little changed at $1,602.78 per ounce by 0546 GMT, having surged to its highest since Jan. 8 at $1,605.10 in the previous session.US gold futures were up 0.1 per cent at $1,605.60.