Gold, silver firmer as risk appetite fades a bit

NEW YORK (June 25) Gold and silver prices are firmer in midday U.S. trading Wednesday. While the geopolitical situation in the Middle East has significantly de-escalated at mid-week, there are still elevated worries and uncertainties regarding an uneasy Israel-Iran ceasefire. August gold was last up $8.20 at $3,342.10. July silver prices were last up $0.348 at $36.08.

Risk appetite is not robust at mid-week, but neither is risk aversion as a fragile Israel-Iran ceasefire appears to be holding. There are also now reports that the U.S. bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities only set back Iran’s nuclear weapons program three to six months. The Trump administration denied those reports.

This week’s fluid geopolitical developments overshadowed a downbeat Conference Board U.S. consumer confidence reading for June—dropping to 93.0 from 98.4 in May. A Wall Street Journal survey expected the June reading to come in a 99.5. The forward-looking expectations index fell to 69.0 in June versus 73.6 in May. The Conference Board says a reading below 80 signals a U.S. recession. The June report suggests U.S. consumers remain very concerned about trade tariffs and their impacts on jobs, prices and inflation.

Said David Morrison of Trade Nation in a morning email dispatch: “It’s worth remembering that China-U.S. trade issues remain unresolved. Chinese Premier Li Qiang struck a cautionary tone overnight, urging global leaders not to let trade disputes become overly politicized. The remark underlined the fact that while the Israel-Iran hostilities and subsequent ceasefire have pulled the focus somewhat, other sources of tension continue to tick along under the surface, for now.”

The key outside markets today see the U.S. dollar index near steady. Nymex crude oil futures prices are up and trading around $66.00 a barrel. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note is presently around 4.3%.

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