Gold prices slipped on Monday, while the dollar also eased on comments from the Federal Reserve chairman in support of a gradual approach to raising rates.

Gold Futures for December delivery traded 0.2% lower to $1,212.7 per troy ounce at 1:35AM ET (05:35 GMT) on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Last Friday, Powell said during a speech at the Jackson Hole Symposium in Wyoming last Friday that "further, gradual" rate hikes were likely in the future, noting the economy is "strong" and able to withstand tighter monetary policy.

His comments came despite President Donald Trump’s criticism of higher borrowing costs as he said recently that he is “not thrilled” with the Fed’s decision to hike rates.

The U.S. Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies, slipped 0.01% to 95.07 on Monday.

Gold has lost its appeal as a safe-haven asset recently as investors turned to the U.S. dollar instead amid recent international trade disputes and the Turkish currency crisis.

Vice Ministers from China and the U.S. are due to meet later this month to resume trade negotiations, after the last round of trade talks ended with little progress made. In addition, US tariffs on $16 billion of Chinese goods went into effect on August 24th, with China quick to follow with reciprocal restrictions and a threat to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization.

Asian equities markets were mostly higher on Monday as the Dow and the S&P500 hit record highs on Friday following Powell’s speech.