Daily Gold Update

Source: Dr. Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— Gold dipped 0.2% to close just under $1,306 before jumping $7 in after-hours trading immediately following the release of minutes from the March FOMC meeting. The text revealed that Fed officials held a secret meeting via video in early March, during which they jettisoned their longstanding 6.5% unemployment threshold for raising interest rates. The central bankers outlined headwinds that may keep rates lower for longer, even after an initial hike, such as higher savings by U.S. and global consumers, credit restraints, and demographic shifts. Near-zero interest rates have supported higher gold prices by flooding the economy with cheap liquidity, devaluing the dollar, and increasing the risk of long-term inflation.

The dollar fell further against the euro and other major rivals, supporting higher gold, immediately following the Fed minutes while U.S. equity indexes rallied. The other precious metals were mixed during session before bouncing after hours. Silver close 1.4% lower, then recouped a third of those losses. Platinum dipped 0.2% before erasing that deficit, while palladium finished nearly 1% higher.

At the Comex close: June gold dipped $3.20 to $1,305.90; May silver lost 29 cents to $19.77; July platinum slipped $2.80 to $1,438.90; and June palladium picked up $6.70 to $782.55 an ounce.