• Shares of gold miners up, tracking rise in bullion prices [GOL/]

• Spot gold up 1.2% at $4,426.52 per ounce, supported by a weaker dollar and fading expectations of a U.S. Federal Reserve rate hike, while investors continued to monitor geopolitical tensions in the Middle East

• The gold market appears to be pricing in a stagflationary environment, with softer employment and expectations that the Fed will tolerate current inflation levels, said Bart Melek, global head of commodity strategy at TD Securities

• Top miners Barrick Mining and Newmont up 2.6% and 2.9%, respectively

• South African miners Gold Fields rises 3.6%, Harmony Gold jumps 3.9% and AngloGold Ashanti gains 3.8%

• Canadian miners Kinross Gold up 2.2% and Agnico Eagle Mines rises 2.4%
(Reporting by Varun Sahay in Bengaluru)