Gold held steady above a nine-month low on Tuesday, but was poised to post its sharpest monthly loss since June 2013 as a rapid climb in the dollar dimmed its appeal, Business World reported. The precious metal is down about 5.5 percent for the month after hitting a nine-month low of $1,206.85 last week. Gold is also on track to post its first quarterly loss of the year, though it is still up about 1 percent for the year. Spot gold edged up $1 to $1,216.71 an ounce by 0627 GMT, after dipping in the last two sessions. The dollar climbed to a four-year peak against a basket of major currencies in September.