Daily Gold Update

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinSilver surged 9.3% to close at $29.42, the highest level in almost eight years, as retail investors swarmed the metal at the prompting of social media sites. Gold rose 0.7% on silver's coattails to close near $1,894 despite increases in stocks, yields, and the dollar.

Following last week's rush into stocks like GameStop and AMC, small investors followed calls from Reddit and other social media platforms to shift their attention to silver, especially mining stocks and silver ETFs backed by bullion. The coordinated demand and ensuing short-covering rallies have driven silver around 19% higher since last Thursday.

Gold traded in sympathy with silver, though without the manic urgency, while also receiving support from sharply higher oil prices. WTI crude rallied 2.8% after OPEC+ production cuts took effect, including Saudi Arabia's pledge to reduce output by 1 million barrels a day. Gold often rises with oil as a hedge against energy-related inflation.

Capping gold's gains, all three major US stock indexes rebounded after last week's GameStop gyrations, with the Dow and S&P 500 rising 0.8% and 1.6%, respectively, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 1.6%.

Risk appetite was also stoked by upbeat data. The ISM reported manufacturing grew strongly in January, although slightly slower than December's rise, which was the biggest in 30 months. The CBO projected the economy will expand 4.6% in 2021, the fastest pace since 1999.

The dollar added 0.5% against major rivals and Treasury yields crept higher. Platinum rose 5.5% and palladium picked up 1.5%.

At the Comex close: April gold gained $13.60 to $1,863.90; March silver surged $2.50 to 29.42; April platinum jumped 59.60 to $1,138.80; and March palladium added $33.30, to $2,241.70 an ounce.