Rising stocks limit gains for the yellow metal
A gloomy outlook for the US economy and a dollar-affected economy support the rise of gold
Gold rose 0.3% to 1947.83 dollars an ounce. ■ archive
Gold prices rose yesterday, after gloomy data for US jobless claims reinforced fears of a slower recovery from the economic crisis caused by the Coronavirus, which negatively affected the dollar and US Treasury yields.
Gold rose in spot trading 0.3% to 1947.83 dollars an ounce. Gold rose 0.2% since the start of last week, after tumbling 4.5% in the week ending August 14th, its worst weekly performance in five weeks.
Gold also rose in US futures contracts 0.5% to 1956.1 dollars.
"The deterioration of US labor market data, low bond yields and continuing geopolitical tension are continuing to support gold," said John Sharma, an economist at the National Australia Bank.
He added, "We expect gold to trade between 1920 and 1980 dollars in the short term," explaining that factors such as increased risk appetite and progress in reaching a vaccine for the Coronavirus may pressure demand.
And a rise in Wall Street, fueled by technology stocks, pushed the Asian markets up yesterday, limiting the yellow metal's gains.
The day before yesterday, data showed that the number of Americans filing for new applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose to over a million, in a setback for the US labor market, afflicted by the Corona pandemic.
This pushed the dollar index and record 10-year US Treasury yields down, making gold an attractive investment for holders of other currencies.
As for the other precious metals, silver gained 0.6% to $ 27.4 an ounce and is preparing for a weekly rise of 3.8%.
Platinum rose 0.6% to $ 922.77, while palladium fell 0.5% to $ 2170.53.