Gold looks set for another weekly gain with the precious metal trading around $1,940 an ounce as investors dial back expectations on further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
Friday brings the latest US nonfarm payroll figures, which are expected to show another 170,000 jobs being added while unemployment is forecast to remain steady at 3.5%. The strength of the US economy in the face of stubbornly high inflation followed by the Fed series of interest rate hikes had bolstered expectations earlier in the summer that the US central bank would implement another hike in September.
However, with pockets of data suggesting that the world’s largest economy could be slowing, investors are now looking ahead to when the Fed will cut interest rates and this is boosting gold.
The fact that gold has managed to trade at such elevated levels even in the face of the Fed’s year-long series of interest rate hikes highlights the underlying uncertainty over the true health of the global economy with investors wanting to keep exposed to the ultimate safe haven asset in gold. Having held above $1,900 an ounce for so long, gold can now continue nudging higher with a fresh challenge of $2,000 before the end of the year now possible.
Rupert is a Market Analyst for Kinesis Money, responsible for updating the community with insights and analysis on the gold and silver markets. He brings with him a breadth of experience in writing about energy and commodities having worked as an oil markets reporter and then precious metals reporter during the seven years he worked at Bloomberg News.
As well as market analysis, Rupert writes longer-form thought leadership pieces on topics ranging from carbon markets, the growth of renewable energy and the challenges of avoiding greenwash while investing sustainably.
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