Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold eased 0.9% to close under $2,036 as rebounds in yields and the dollar prompted traders to take profits from yesterday’s 2.4% rally. The metal ended the week with a gain of 0.9%.

New York Fed chief John Williams splashed some cold water on investors’ eagerness for rate cuts today. Considered a key ally of Fed Chair Powell, Williams said rates are currently “at of near the right place” and emphasized that talk of reducing rates is “premature.”

Williams’ comments seemed intended to quell market enthusiasm over the end of rising interest rates resulting from the Fed’s dovish forward guidance this week. At the end its two-day meeting on policy, Powell acknowledged that the cycle of monetary tightening is likely over, and that the time of rate cuts is coming “into view.”

According to the central bank’s quarterly updated dot-plot, 17 of 19 committee members projected lower interest rates in 2024, with more than half forecasting 75 basis points of cuts.

Gold and silver surged on the dovish policy pivot yesterday while yields and the dollar plummeted. Whether intentionally or not, the jawboning from Williams helped to check this momentum.

The dollar rebounded by 0.6%, pressuring gold by making it more expensive in other currencies, limiting demand overseas. Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields crept slightly higher but hovered near a five-month low.

Meanwhile, more mixed US economic data pointed to meager growth. The S&P flash services PMI inched up to 51.3 while the manufacturing PMI fell to 48.2, where a reading under 50 signifies contraction. The Empire State manufacturing index tumbled to a four-month low.

The other precious metals were mixed for the day and higher for the week. Silver slipped 0.9% but still rose 4.3% for the week. Platinum lost 1.5% today but gained 4.5% this week. Palladium surged another 7.2% for a weekly advance of 26.3%.

At the Comex close: February gold dropped $9.20 to $2,035.70; March silver shed 23 cents to $24.15; January platinum lost $14.70 to $961.20; and March palladium jumped $81 to $1,202.40 an ounce.