Gold dips on durable goods report this morning, after hanging tough overnight. Overall, markets continue to roil. Wall Street set to open down by 100+ points this morning, headed for its fourth weekly loss, while the yellow metal looks headed for its worst week in six.
Bullion has come under pressure as the dollar was poised for its best week since April. A stronger dollar is typically bearish for gold. But hope of new stimulus measures — which are typically bullish — supported the precious metal.
Gold futures rose 0.5% Thursday to settle at $1,876.90 an ounce on Comex. The December contract decreased 4.3% in the first four days of the week and is down 5.1% so far this month. Gold is still up more than $300 — or 23% — so far this year as investors have flocked to gold because of uncertainty from the coronavirus pandemic and the economy. Currently, the December contract is $1,860.90 an ounce, while the DG spot price is $1,863.60.
Democratic lawmakers in Congress may renew discussions with the White House over a new coronavirus relief bill to be worth around $2.4 trillion, according to The Washington Post.
The U.S. Federal Reserve indicated last week that it would keep interest rates near zero for some time as the economic impact of the pandemic has decimated global economic growth and cost millions of Americans their jobs. A series of Fed policymakers have spoken out this week and have called on the government to provide more fiscal support to the economy.
The virus known as COVID-19 has killed almost 982,000 people worldwide and sickened 32.1 million. About 22% of the cases — and 21% of the deaths — are in the U.S. The country has 6.98 million cases, more than any other nation.
The pandemic has also cost millions of Americans their jobs. Applications for new unemployment benefits unexpectedly increased last week, a weak signal for the economy. Initial jobless claims came in at 870,000 for the week ended Sept. 19, according to data released Thursday by the Labor Department. That was above the 850,000 estimated by economists surveyed by Dow Jones and the prior week’s 860,000 claims.
Silver futures gained 0.4% Thursday to settle at $23.20 an ounce on Comex, but the December contract is down 15% in the first four days of the week. The most active contract is down 19% this month after gaining 18% in August and soaring 30% in July. Currently, the December contract is $22.830 an ounce, while the DG spot price is $22.92.
Spot palladium fell 0.6% Thursday to $2,246.00 an ounce and is down 5.7% so far this week. Spot platinum increased 0.1% Thursday to $854.50 an ounce and has declined 8.8% so far this week. DG spot price for platinum is currently $844.30 an ounce, while palladium is $2,221.60
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