Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold fell 0.5% to close under $1,312 as slowing global growth and fears of another US government shutdown drove investors into the dollar, undercutting alternative assets.

The ICE Dollar Index added nearly 0.5% to reach its highest level in more than six weeks, with weakness in the euro and pound causing Forex traders to seek safety. The buck even made headway against traditional safe-haven currencies like the yen and Swiss franc, which were pulled lower by weakness in European and Asian economies.

Because gold is denominated in dollars for international trade, strength in the currency pressures the metal by making it more expensive outside of the US.

Last week, both Britain and the EU slashed their growth projections for 2019 from 1.7% to 1.2%. China has been posting weaker GDP numbers over the past quarter, stoking concerns that its trade war with the US may trigger a hard landing in its economy. While the US growth faces its own headwinds from slowing global growth and trade conflicts, investors still see it as the healthiest major economy in the world for now.

Congress reached an impasse over the weekend on negotiations to fund the government. Another partial shutdown will occur if no deal is reached by Friday. The last one cost the economy $11 billion, according to the CBO.

The other precious metals were also lower, with silver sliding 0.8% while platinum and palladium fell 2% and 1.1%, respectively.

At the Comex close: April gold fell $6.60 to $1,311.90; March silver lost 12 cents to $15.69; April platinum surrendered $15.90 to $786.60; and March palladium dropped $14.40 to $1,356.80 an ounce.