Gold lowers

Bengaluru: Gold prices inched lower early on Wednesday as the U.S. dollar firmed amid an escalating trade spat between the United States and China.

Spot gold was down 0.3 percent at $1,251.74 an ounce at 0102 GMT. U.S. gold futures for August delivery were down 0.3 percent at $1,251.20 an ounce.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was 0.1 percent higher at 94.209.

The Trump administration raised the stakes in its trade war with China on Tuesday, saying it would slap 10 percent tariffs on an extra $200 billion worth of Chinese imports.

Last week, Washington imposed 25 percent tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports, and Beijing responded immediately with matching tariffs on the same amount of U.S. exports to China.