Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold climbed 0.8% to close above $1,793 rising global pandemic worries and a weaker dollar lifted demand for alternative stores of value. It was the metal's highest finish in eight weeks.

Covid-19 is raging in India, which reported 200,000 new cases for the seventh consecutive day, overwhelming hospitals. Recent Hindu festivals and political rallies have been identified as superspreader events, but the nation is also under siege from a new "double mutant" virus that is highly infectious.

Global markets have come under pressure this week as investors weigh upbeat news from China, whose economy expanded 18% in the first quarter, against concern that inconsistent progress in combating the pandemic could undermine the global recovery.

Wall Street rebounded after two days of losses, with traders snapping up blue chip stocks like Microsoft and Tesla. Treasury yields held near recent lows, with benchmark 10-year yields hovering around 1.56%. Weaker yields support gold by decreasing the opportunity costs of holding it instead of bonds as a safe-haven asset.

The dollar dipped 0.1% against major rivals, supporting gold and other commodities priced in it for global trade by making them less expensive in other currencies.

The other precious metals were also higher, with silver rising 2.8% while platinum and palladium added 1.5% and 4.3%, respectively.

At the Comex close: June gold climbed $14.70 to $1,793.10; May rose 73 cents to $26.57; July platinum added $18.40, to $1,214.70; and June palladium jumped $118.20 to $2,875.60, a new record.