Gold slightly higher after ‘brutal week’ that saw 3-month lows
NEW YORK (June 23) Gold futures were slightly higher Friday after three days of falls that took the most-active contract to its lowest settlement in three months following a flurry of interest-rate hikes from central banks in Europe on Thursday.
Price action
- Gold futures for August delivery GC00, 0.50% GCQ23, 0.50% gained $5.10, or 0.3%, to $1,928 per ounce on Comex.
- Silver futures for July delivery SI00, -0.25% SIN23, -0.25% fell by 9 cents, or 0.4%, to $22.38 per ounce.
- September palladium PAU23, 0.66% gained $17.90, or 1.4%, to $1,290 per ounce, while July platinum PLN23, -0.17% rose by $3.70, or 0.4%, to $930 per ounce.
- Copper for July HGN23, -2.22% fell by 6 cents, or 1.5%, to $3.83 per pound.
Market drivers
Gold prices managed to find some support on Friday, but both gold and silver are set to finish the week sharply lower, the latest milestone for a selloff in precious metals that has seen the price of gold lose more than $100 since its early May peak.
Central banks in Australia and Canada raised interest rates earlier this month and central banks in the U.K., Switzerland, Norway, and Turkey raised interest rates on Thursday, while in the past week the Federal Reserve has telegraphed two more interest-rate hikes later this year. Higher interest rates, designed to quell inflation, and the promise of higher yields from global bonds and money market accounts, has helped to sap some demand for gold.
However, Raffi Boyadjian, lead investment analyst at XM, noted that gold appears to be finding a floor following a “brutal week” for the yellow metal.
MarketWatch
