Gold futures edge back from the prior day’s sizable gain
London (Sept 26) Gold futures inched down Tuesday, erasing a bit of the previous session’s sharp rise that came as tensions between the U.S. and North Korea ramped up again.
Traders are waiting for speeches from Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen and other U.S. central bankers, as well as fresh readings on the housing market and consumer confidence.
December gold GCZ7, -0.52% slipped by $1.90, or 0.1%, to $1,309.60 an ounce, while December silver SIZ7, -0.77% was roughly unchanged at $17.15 an ounce.
On Monday, gold climbed 1.1%, recouping roughly half of last week’s loss and achieving its highest finish since Sept. 15. The precious metal and other safety plays drew buyers as North Korea’s foreign minister described U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent comments as “clearly a declaration of war.”
“Gold surged by a good $15 to around $1,310 per troy ounce yesterday afternoon and is continuing to trade at this level this morning,” said Commerzbank analysts led by Carsten Fritsch in a note Tuesday.
“Market participants are likely to be looking with interest today at speeches by various Fed members, including Fed Chair Janet Yellen,” they added.
Yellen is scheduled to speak in Cleveland about inflation, uncertainty and monetary policy at 12:45 p.m. Eastern Time.
Also on the Fed front, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester is due to moderate a panel discussion on the global economic outlook at 9:30 a.m. Eastern and Fed Gov. Lael Brainard is slated to talk about labor market disparities at 10:30 a.m. in Washington, D.C.
At 12:30 p.m., Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic is expected to give a speech on the economic outlook and monetary policy in Atlanta.
Dollar headwind: The ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +0.39% was edging higher Tuesday to 92.78, putting a little pressure on commodities. A strengthening buck makes it more expensive for holders of other currencies to buy dollar-denominated commodities.
Other economic news: A July figure for a U.S. home price index is due at 9 a.m. Eastern Time, then August data on new home sales is expected at 10 a.m. Eastern. Economists polled by MarketWatch forecast that 585,000 new homes were sold.
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Also at 10 a.m. Eastern, a September number for a consumer confidence index is slated to arrive, with economists anticipating a reading of 119.5.
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