Gold nears three-month top amid fresh trade/geopolitical concerns, USD recovery
- Gold prices stay on the front foot for the second consecutive day.
- US-Middle East tension, doubts over phase-two deal seem to be in the spotlight off-late.
- USD recovery, nearness to phase-one deal signing failed to disappoint the Bullion buyers.
Gold prices take the bids around $1,529 during Friday’s Asian session. The yellow metal surged to the highest since late-September the previous day. In doing so, it ignored the US dollar (USD) recovery and nearness to the US-China phase-one deal.
Although the US and China are near to signing the phase-one deal on January 15, doubts over the phase-two talks crossed wires via The Hill. The story mentions the volume of Chinese purchases of the US farm goods, intellectual property violations and forced technology transfer as the key stumbling blocks.
Even so, the US-Middle East tension, coupled with the latest US sanctions on the Cuban Defence Minister, seems to challenge the market’s risk tone and support the safe-haven demand.
In doing so, the US 10-year treasury yields stay on the back foot around 1.87% while the S&P 500 Futures stay mostly unchanged to 3,260 by the press time.
Thursday’s greenback recovery could be attributed to sparse trading conditions and profit-booking as the US data were mixed.
Traders will now keep a close eye on the trade/political headlines for fresh impulse whereas the US ISM Manufacturing PMI and FOMC minutes could entertain momentum traders afterward.
Technical Analysis
Unless breaking September 24 top near $1,536, the commodity is less likely to aim for the 2019 top surrounding $1,557. Meanwhile, a downside break of $1,520 may fetch the quote back to $1,500.
Author
Anil Panchal
FXStreet
Anil Panchal has nearly 15 years of experience in tracking financial markets. With a keen interest in macroeconomics, Anil aptly tracks global news/updates and stays well-informed about the global financial moves and their implications.
