Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinExtending last week's 2.9% rise, gold jumped another 1.4% to close at $1,866 as the worsening pandemic clouded the economic outlook, lifting demand for safe havens.

More than 173,000 new cases reported were reported yesterday across the country, and a record-high 100,000 Americans are now hospitalized with the virus. California imposed new stay-at-home orders, restricting commerce and pressuring employment, after reporting more than 30,000 new cases on Friday.

The White House COVID-19 response coordinator, Dr. Deborah Birx, warned yesterday that the current surge "is the worst even this country will face." Hospitals are already overrun and the holiday season, when a major spike of infections is expected, has only just begun.

Benchmark 10-year US Treasurys rallied, pressuring yields, as investors looked beyond the recent vaccine news to focus on the current and deeply problematic state of the pandemic.

Against this backdrop, a new and desperately needed pandemic relief package of $900 billion gathered momentum in Congress, with a bipartisan group of lawmakers expected to offer the bill as soon as today.

Additional stimulus is considered bullish for gold in its traditional rose as a hedge against inflation and currency devaluation.

The dollar was little changed from its 30-month low, falling early in the session on stimulus progress before rebounding slightly after a breakdown in Brexit negotiations for a trade deal between the UK and EU caused the pound to weaken. The two sides have little time left to prevent a chaotic departure by Britain on December 31.

The other precious metals were mixed, with silver rising 2.2% while platinum and palladium fell 2.2% and 0.3%, respectively.

At the Comex close: February gold added $26, to $1,866; March silver rose 54 cents to $24.79; January platinum dropped $23.40 to $1,049.40; March palladium dipped $6 to $2,351.30 an ounce, down 1.4%.