PRECIOUS-Gold inches up on safe-haven demand ahead of US reciprocal tariffs

By Anushree Mukherjee and Anjana Anil

April 2 (Reuters) - Gold prices edged higher on Wednesday as investors sought the comfort of the safe-haven metal in anticipation of the potential impact of the new reciprocal tariffs that U.S. President Donald Trump is set to levy on global trading partners.

Spot gold XAU= was up 0.1% at $3,113.24 an ounce as of 0710 GMT. Bullion hit an all-time high of $3,148.88 on Tuesday.

U.S. gold futures GCcv1 eased 0.1% to $3,141.80.

"The market could test $3,400/oz over the next 9 months in a bull case scenario," said Aakash Doshi, global head of gold strategy at State Street Global Advisors.

Suspense surrounded the market ahead of the U.S. tariffs, due to be announced at 2000 GMT on Wednesday, which President Donald Trump has called "Liberation Day".

The White House confirmed new tariffs will be imposed, though it provided no details on the size or scope.

Trump's tariff policies could flare up inflation, slow economic growth and escalate trade disputes.

"The main reason for these successive record highs has been safe-haven buying, and the geopolitical uncertainty underpinning this shows no sign of letting up," said Philip Newman, managing director of Metals Focus.

A U.S. economic slowdown, potentially higher inflation, and interest rate cuts could set the stage for gold to reach $3,300 in the coming months, Newman said.

Gold's rally has also been fuelled by strong central bank demand, expectations of interest rate easing by the Federal Reserve, geopolitical instability in the Middle East and Europe, and increased flows into gold-backed exchange traded funds.

The metal is considered a hedge against political instability and inflation.

Fed officials are concerned that employment could slip, but the threat of tariff-driven inflation limits their ability to do anything about it.

Markets also await the U.S. ADP employment report due later in the day, and non-farm payrolls due on Friday.

Spot silver XAG= lost 0.3% to $33.63 an ounce, platinum XPT= slipped 0.5% to $974.90, and palladium XPD= fell 0.3% to $980.67.