Gold futures are surging more than 1% to kick off the trading week, buoyed by a falling greenback and a dovish Federal Reserve. The yellow metal recently came off a November gain of 0.5% and it is looking to end 2018 strong, especially after it has been on the decline since peaking in April.
February gold futures rose $13.30, or 1.08%, to $1,239.30 per ounce at 13:32 GMT on Monday. Gold prices shed 0.5% last week, despite advancements towards the end of the trading week.
Silver, the sister commodity to gold, is rallying to start the trading week. March silver futures spiked $0.41, or 2.89%, to $14.62 an ounce. The white metal tacked on 0.5% last week, but it suffered a 0.2% dip in November. Like gold, silver has had a volatile 2018, plunging 13% so far this year.
The US dollar fell 0.09% to 97.04 on news that the US and China will pause their trade war following the important meeting between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit this past weekend. The greenback, which has served as a
It was announced in Argentina that the world’s two biggest economies will introduce a 90-day suspension on trade hostilities. This means that Washington will suspend a planned increase to tariffs from 10% to 25% on $200 billion in Chinese goods. President Trump also confirmed that Beijing has agreed to reduce and remove tariffs on US automobiles.
Meanwhile, gold is still experiencing the momentum from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and his dovish comments. He told an audience at the Economic Club of New York:
Interest rates are still low by historical standards, and they remain just below the broad range of estimates of the level that would be neutral for the economy.
While the release of the November Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes calmed markets down, investors feel that these remarks are bullish for the precious metal in the long run.
In other metals markets, January copper futures added $0.06, or 2.13%, to $2.84 per pound. January platinum futures edged up $8.90, or 1.11%, to $808.70 an ounce. January palladium futures soared $23.70, or 2.07%, to $1,169.50 per ounce.
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