Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold gained 1.8% to close at a fresh six-year high of $1,457.50 after escalating trade tensions and slowing US job growth pressured the dollar and pushed investors into safe havens. The metal added 2.7% for week.

President Trump shocked financial markets yesterday by announcing an additional 10% tariff on $300 billion in goods from China, sharply ratcheting up tensions between the world's two biggest economies. China vowed to retaliate with countermeasures "to protect the country's core and fundamental interests."

Gold quickly surged above $1,450 in electronic trading yesterday and Treasury yields tumbled as investors sought protection from the increasingly bitter trade war. The metal extended those gains today after slowing job growth increased the odds of another rate cut from the Fed in September.

US nonfarm payrolls added 164,000 jobs in July, holding the unemployment rate at 3.7%, close to a 50-year low. Totals for May and June were revised lower by 41,000, however, and the average monthly increase fell to 140,000 over three months, the lowest in two years.

The dollar fell 0.3% against major rivals as traders speculated that the combination of rising trade tensions and slower hiring will convince the Fed to cut rates again when it meets in September. CME FedWatch places the odds of another quarter-point cut at more than 99%, based on Fed-funds futures trading.

Lower interest rates pressure the dollar by making it less attractive to foreign exchange investors seeking higher yield. A weaker dollar, in turn, supports gold and other commodities priced in it for global trade.

The other precious metals were mixed for the day and lower for the week. Silver rose 0.6% today but slid 0.8% this week. Platinum added 0.2% but fell 1.7% this week. Palladium dropped 0.7% and 8.3% this week.

At the Comex close: December gold gained $25.10 to $1,457.50; September silver picked up 9 cents to $16.27; October platinum added $1.70, to $853; and September palladium slid $10.10 to $1,404.20 an ounce.