Daily Gold Update

Source: Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin— Gold jumped 1.1% to close above $1,236 as falling oil and equities boosted demand for safe-haven assets.

The S&P 500 tumbled 1.5%, surrendering all of this year's gains, as investors grow increasingly concerned that measures by central banks are falling short of what's needed to pull the global economy out of its funk.

Also pressuring equities, oil futures pulled back after two days of gains, in part because of uncertainty over whether Saudi Arabia will freeze production.

The dollar plunged to an 18-month low against the yen, widely seen as a safe-haven currency, in response to the dovish signals sent by Janet Yellen last week. The Fed Chair argued for a cautious approach to tightening monetary policy in light weak inflation and rising risks from global weakness. Yesterday's release of the minutes from the Fed's last meeting underscored the likelihood of fewer and slower rate hikes this year.

U.S. Treasury prices tracked higher and yields fell to a six-week low as investors sought safety.

The other precious metals were mostly higher, with silver and platinum picking up 0.7% and 1.1%, respectively, while outlier palladium lost 0.8%.

At the Comex close: June gold jumped $13.70 to $1,237.50; May silver added 10 cents, to $15.16; July platinum picked up $10 to $954.70; and June palladium dropped $4.15 to $533.80 an ounce.