Gold prices dipped on Tuesday in Asia as investors looked ahead to the July Federal Reserve meeting minutes later this week and keep an eye on the exchange rate in China. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for December delivery eased 0.18% to $1,116.40 a troy ounce. In Beijing, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) maintained its push to stabilize the yuan, days after its currency suffered its most tumultuous week in years. Metal traders also await the release of the Federal Open Market Committee's minutes from its July meeting for further indications from the Federal Reserve later this week on the timing of a potential interest rate hike.

LME copper fell to USD 5,076/mt at one point Monday and closed at USD 5,115/mt, down by USD 55/mt. Foreign investment banks were pessimistic about metal prices fearing that China’s economic slowdown will hurt metal demand. SHFE 1510 copper contract may trade at RMB 38,700-39,300/mt on August 18. Spot premiums were reported from China’s copper market Monday, but the premiums are unlikely to expand with imported copper keeping flowing in. China's 3,785 enterprises will have to cut production or halt operation due to the Sep. 3 parade in Beijing. As a result, commodity prices will be weighed down considering weak demand for commodities.

Crude eased in Asia on Tuesday with attention focused on demand prospects from China in the wake of a weaker yuan and looking ahead to U.S. industry estimates of stockpiles. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, WTI crude for October delivery traded down 0.13% to $42.36 a barrel.  As crude prices continue to linger at its lowest levels in years, investors have expressed little optimism that the current supply-demand imbalance can be corrected in the short-term. OPEC, meanwhile, increased its crude production by 100,000 bpd in July to 31.5 million bpd, even as Saudi Arabian output fell mildly.