March 7 (Reuters) - Gold prices inched higher early Wednesday to their highest in a week as U.S. equities and the dollar weakened after President Donald Trump said he would push
ahead with punitive tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, rekindling fears of a potential trade war. FUNDAMENTALS: * Spot gold rose 0.1 percent to $1,335.07 per ounce
at 0126 GMT after hitting $1,340.42 an ounce earlier in the session, its highest since Feb. 26. * U.S. gold futures for April delivery rose 0.1
percent to $1,336.30 per ounce. * U.S. stock futures and the dollar slumped on Wednesday after a key advocate for free trade in the White House announced
his resignation, fanning fears Trump would go ahead with tariffs and risk a trade war. * Trump's top economic adviser Gary Cohn resigned on Tuesday
after the U.S. president said he was sticking with plans to impose hefty tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, which some
critics have dubbed the first shot in a global trade war. * The U.S. dollar will retreat further over the coming year,
giving way to an ascendant euro, according to a Reuters poll of strategists who said five or more Federal Reserve rate rises
would be needed to significantly boost the greenback's fortunes. * Feeling the pressure of sanctions, North Korea seems
"sincere" in its apparent willingness to halt nuclear tests if it held denuclearization talks with the United States, Trump
said on Tuesday as U.S., South Korean and Japanese officials voiced skepticism about any discussions. * Asian gold-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) added more tonnes in February than North America and Europe, reversing its
2017 trend of having more flows out, the World Gold Council said on Tuesday.
