Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold fell 0.6% to close at a fresh one-month low of $1,868 as stocks bounced higher on upbeat data and the dollar rallied, limiting demand for alternative assets.

US durable goods orders rose 1.9% in September, marking five straight months of increases, as Americans bought more cars and trucks. Core orders excluding defense and transportation also gained, signaling strength in business investment.

GDP grew a record 33% during the third quarter as the economy reopened after COVID-19 lockdowns, driven in part by more than $3 trillion in fiscal stimulus approved by Congress in March. But with aid expiring and no new stimulus in the pipeline, growth is expected to slow to 3% in Q4.

Despite the record Q3 surge, the economy remains well under its pre-pandemic levels. Real GDP is down 3.5%, which is the same as the worst period of the financial crisis of 2008-9. Nearly half of the 22 million workers laid off by COVID are still without jobs.

Wall Street applauded the upbeat data, with the Dow and S&P 500 rising nearly 1% and 1.6%, respectively, to rebound partially from yesterday's selloff. The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 2% on expected earnings from Amazon, Apple, and Google.

The dollar gained 0.6% against major rivals led by the euro after the ECB signaled additional easing will be forthcoming in December as COVID forces new lockdowns in France and Germany. A rising dollar weighs on gold and other commodities by making them more expensive in other currencies.

The other precious metals were mostly lower, with platinum and palladium dropping 2.9% and 2.3%, respectively, while silver finished virtually flat.

At the Comex close: December gold dropped $11.20 to $1,868; December silver was unchanged at $23.36; January platinum lost $25.50 to $849.50; and December palladium fell $52.10 to $2,198,50 an ounce.