Gold futures edged a bit lower in Friday dealings, with prices looking to post a loss for the week a day after tapping their lowest intraday level since May.
Investors continued to digest a decision by the Federal Reserve announced Wednesday afternoon to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged, while senior officials indicated another two rate hikes are on the table for this year.
Price Action
-
Gold for August delivery
GC00,
+0.03%
GCQ23,
+0.03%
fell 80 cents, or less than 0.1%, to $1,969 per ounce on Comex. Prices based on the most-active contract eyed a weekly loss of about 0.4%, FactSet data show. -
Silver for July delivery
SI00,
+0.58% SIN23,
+0.58%
advanced by 13.3 cents, or 0.6%, to $24.08 per ounce, with prices trading around 1.4% lower for the week. -
Palladium for September
PAU23,
+0.69%
delivery gained $1.20, or 0.1%, to $1,398.50 per ounce, while platinum for July
PLN23,
-0.95%
delivery declined by $9.50, or 1%, to $982.40 per ounce. -
Copper for July delivery
HGN23,
+0.08%
traded at $3.899 per pound, down nearly 0.1%.
Market drivers
Gold prices finished a bit higher on Thursday after the most-active futures contract dipped to as low as $1,936.10 an ounce, the lowest intraday level since late May.
Prices for the metal have been “chopping sideways” for the last four weeks and this week’s price movement produced some of the same “‘confused trading,’ largely due to the Fed’s latest plan to hike rates two more times this year,” Adam Koos, president at Libertas Wealth Management Group, told MarketWatch. “Investors are puzzled, as inflation and employment have both stabilized.”
Still, “two more hikes would certainly create a headwind for gold over the course of the coming weeks,” he said.
On Friday, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said the fallout from several bank failures in the spring is likely to continue to play a role in the central bank’s decision on how much to raise interest rates.
Also see: 5 key takeaways from Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference Wednesday
Taking a look at the bigger picture, Koos said it’s “crucial to understand that gold is both an inflation hedge, as well as a hedge against a struggling economy.”
The central bank “pausing hikes this month is a signal that not only are we close to a point where [Fed Chairman Jerome Powell] is ready to allow rates to marinate for a while, but it also means that he’s seeing economic reports as more concerning,” he said. “I think this is a ‘neutral’ for gold.”
Following the Fed’s decision, the U.S. dollar has weakened against most major currencies, with the ICE U.S. Dollar index
DXY,
trading more than 1% lower for the week, though up 0.2% in Friday dealings, at 102.30.
A stronger dollar can pressure prices for dollar-denominated gold prices, while a weaker dollar can support gold prices. Koos believes a weaker dollar will help gold in the long term.
This post was originally published on Market Watch
