Int'l gold price closes flat amid uncertain US Fed rate cut prospects

The gold futures for February delivery on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange retreated from an intraday high to close flat at 4,234 U.S. dollars per ounce on Friday, as investors were grappling with uncertainty over the U.S. Federal Reserve's potential interest rate cuts next year.

Gold briefly surged more than 1 percent on the day at one point in the trading session boosted by investor optimism over the Fed's potential rate cut.

The gain then narrowed due to uncertainty over the pace of the Fed's rate cuts next year, coupled with a rise in the U.S. dollar index during the late trading session and profit-taking by investors.

Medical supplies have rapidly dwindled in the Gaza Strip after Israel closed all crossings amid escalating tensions with Iran, leaving hospitals and patients struggling to obtain essential medicines.

Israel announced on Feb. 28 the closure of all crossings into the Gaza Strip, including the Rafah land crossing, until further notice, citing security concerns. The move halted the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

The disruption of supply routes has rapidly depleted medicine stocks across the enclave, with many commonly used drugs beginning to run out, placing mounting pressure on hospitals and patients.

Some widely used drugs have already run out at Al-Awda Hospital in central Gaza as the staff there are checking remaining supplies.

"This is your medicine, but now it's out of stock," a staff member at the hospital's pharmacy told a patient.

"This type of medicine isn't available at the hospital. I will try to find it elsewhere," said the patient.

The hospital said that more than 85 percent of medical consumables is now out of stock. Painkillers, antibiotics, surgical and anesthetic drugs, as well as diagnostic reagents, are all in severe shortage. Some commonly used medications for chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes have also become difficult to obtain.

"Every day the warehouse informs us that a certain medicine has run out, so we keep searching for alternatives. Patients are also looking everywhere for medicines, but often they still cannot find them," said the head of the medicine warehouse at Al-Awda Hospital.