Gold climbed early Friday and headed for a weekly gain after a report that the U.S. was imposing tariffs on imports of 1 kilogram gold bars.
Washington may subject the most widely traded gold bullion bars in the United States to country specific import tariffs, according to a ruling on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection service’s website on Friday. This supports a report by The Financial Times on Thursday, citing a letter from Customs and Border Protection dated July 31. The move could affect Switzerland, the world’s largest refining hub. The 1 kg bars are the most commonly traded form on Comex, the world’s largest gold futures market, the newspaper reported. The report caused the premium for gold futures in the U.S. over the London market to widen.
December gold futures rose 0.6% Thursday to settle at $3,453.70 an ounce on Comex, and the front-month contract rallied 1.6% in the first four days of the week. Bullion gained 1.2% in July after slipping 0.2% in June and losing 0.1% in May. It’s up 31% this year. The metal rose 27% in 2024, its biggest annual gain since 2010. The December contract is currently up $43.70 (+1.27%) an ounce to $3497.40 and the DG spot price is $3398.90.
The yellow metal is up more than 3% this month through Thursday amid haven demand from investors concerned about the state of the economy, including a weak labor market. Traders have been raising bets on an interest rate cut at Federal Reserve policymakers’ next meeting in September. Lower interest rates are typically bullish for gold, making it a more attractive alternate investment.
Continuing claims for U.S. unemployment benefits reached the highest level since November 2021 in data released Thursday by the Labor Department. That’s seen as a sign that it’s taking job seekers longer to find employment. U.S. initial jobless claims also increased 226,000 in the week ended Aug. 2, up from 221,000 the week before.
Separately, though, second quarter U.S. productivity improved.
Last week, the key U.S. monthly employment report showed that the labor market added just 73,000 jobs last month, below economists’ expectations.
Investors also continued to watch how the rollout of U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest tariffs this week will affect the economy – particularly whether they will pressure to the Fed to cut rates next month.
More than 91% of the investors tracked by the CME FedWatch Tool are now betting that the Fed will cut rates at its next policy meeting in September. That’s a switch from about 38% a week ago. The Fed held rates unchanged at 4.25% to 4.50% all year, including at policymakers’ most recent meeting last week. The central bank began raising interest rates in March 2022 to fight inflation, ultimately imposing increases of by 5.25 percentage points before beginning rate cuts last year.
Front-month silver futures increased 1% Thursday to settle at $38.29 an ounce on Comex, and the most-active September contract gained 3.7% in the first four days of the week. Silver rose 1.5% in July after increasing 9.5% in June and adding 0.6% in May. It rose 21% in 2024. The September contract is currently up $0.251 (+0.66%) an ounce to $38.545 and the DG spot price is $38.43.
Spot palladium increased 0.6% Thursday to $1,156.50 an ounce and is down 5.1% so far this week. Palladium climbed 8.8% in July after surging 14% in June and advancing 2.8% in May. Palladium dropped 17% last year. Currently, the DG spot price is down $21.60 an ounce to $1147.50.
Spot platinum fell 10 cents Thursday to $1,340.40 an ounce, though it rose 2.2% so far this week. It dropped 3.9% in July after climbing 27% in June and rising 8.6% in May. Platinum lost 8.4% in 2024. The DG spot price is down $12.50 an ounce to $1337.60.
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