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Gold prices were steady on Wednesday as another round of talks to raise the U.S. government's debt ceiling ended with no progress, while investors assessed the possibility of further rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold held steady at $1,975.99 per ounce by 0020 GMT. U.S. gold futures edged 0.1% higher to $1,977.10.

* The dollar index held firm, keeping a lid a gold prices.

* U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he does not think a deal on raising the government's debt ceiling will get done on Tuesday, according to a video posted on Twitter by a Fox News producer.* Representatives of U.S. President Joe Biden and congressional Republicans ended another round of debt ceiling talks on Tuesday without resolution as the deadline to raise the government's $31.4 trillion borrowing limit or risk default ticked closer. The nation is facing the risk of default in as soon as nine days. * A tight U.S. job market and rising wages are beginning to have more of an impact on inflation and could embed faster rising prices if the demand for workers is not brought into better balance with the labor force, new research from an ex-Federal Reserve chief and a former top International Monetary Fund economist has concluded.

* Minutes of the Federal Reserve's May meeting are due on Wednesday. Markets are currently pricing in a 73.1% chance of the Fed holding rates next month, the CME FedWatch tool showed.

* Business sentiment at big Japanese manufacturers turned positive for the first time this year and service-sector morale hit a five-month high, the Reuters Tankan poll showed, providing more evidence of an economy on the mend after a COVID-led recession.

* Spot silver rose 0.3% to $23.48 per ounce, platinum added 0.4% to $1,052.45, and palladium advanced 0.7% to $1,455.33.