Dubai: Gold prices touch new highs in early trade.
Gold prices rose to a new record high in Dubai on Tuesday, as precious metal crossed $3,015 per ounce.
At 9am, 24K was trading at Dh362.75 per gram, up Dh2.75 per gram from the previous close. Similarly, 22K rose to Dh336.0, 21K to Dh322.0 and 18K to Dh276.0 per gram.
Spot gold was trading at $3,011.58 per ounce, up 0.46 per cent, at 9.10am. It crossed $3,015 per ounce earlier in the day as tariff uncertainty fueled the safe-haven metal's demand.
Vijay Valecha, chief investment officer at Century Financial, said the ongoing tariff uncertainties have set off the demand for safe-haven assets, and the trend is expected to continue.
'This week also beholds the US Federal Reserve's meeting, in which the comments of Fed Chair Jerome Powell will be of focus as market participants try to gauge the interest rate outlook sentiment. With regards to the interest rate decision, according to CME's Fed watch tool, there is a 99 per cent probability that the interest rates will remain at current levels,' said Valecha.
Inki Cho, financial markets strategist consultant at Exness, said the gold market could see some corrections, but geopolitical and economic uncertainties may continue to provide support. 'In this regard, rising tensions in the Middle East could sustain demand for gold,' said Cho.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
20 hours ago
- The National
Wall Street lifted by upbeat US jobs report and Tesla rebound
Wall Street closed higher on Friday, buoyed by a better-than-expected US jobs report and a rebound in Tesla Motors shares, although concern about the Federal Reserve's rates policy remained. The Labour Department reported on Friday that the American economy added 139,000 jobs in May, slower than previous months but beating analyst estimates, with the unemployment rate holding steady at 4.2 per cent. It also indicated that wages grew at a solid pace, which may mean the Fed is unlikely to cut interest rates – something that US President Donald Trump has demanded from the US central bank. Mr Trump on Thursday increased the pressure on Fed chairman Jerome Powell, urging him to cut interest rates by a full percentage point. Mr Powell so far has resisted the calls from the White House and maintains that policy decisions will be data dependent. He met Mr Trump at the White House last week and was firm that rate decisions will be made 'as required by law'. 'The labour market's resilience puts the Fed in a difficult spot: inflation pressures remain sticky and the cooling many expected simply hasn't materialised in the data that matters most,' said Nigel Green, chief executive of Dubai-based financial services firm deVere Group. 'This report puts another nail in the coffin for any talk of rate cuts in the summer. The Fed has said time and again it needs to see weakness in the labour market to move. This isn't weakness. It's strength with staying power.' Investors also continue to monitor the tariff situation between the US and China. After imposing substantial tit-for-tat levies on imports, the world's two biggest economies agreed to a detente on their trade war on May 12. Talks appear to be progressing: Mr Trump on Thursday spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and on Friday Mr Trump said trade officials from Washington and Beijing will meet in London on Monday to resume discussions. 'Investors couldn't care less. Dips in equity markets are still seen as opportunities to buy cheaper. And while the data is fun to watch, it remains secondary to the blind bullishness,' said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a senior analyst at Swissquote Bank. 'That's the takeaway from the post – April 2 rally: the world may be wobbling, but markets march on,' she added, referring to the day Mr Trump announced his sweeping global tariffs programme. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average both settled 1 per cent higher, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.2 per cent. Tesla, whose stock plummeted 14 per cent on Thursday in response chief executive Elon Musk's escalating public feud with Mr Trump, rebounded to close 3.7 per cent higher. The Texas-based company's shares rose by as much as 6 per cent. For the week, the S&P was up 1.5 per cent, the Dow added 1.2 per cent and the Nasdaq rose 2.2 per cent. Year-to-date, the indices are up 2 per cent, 0.5 per cent and 1.1 per cent, respectively. In Europe, markets were mostly up after the US jobs report eased fears of an economic slowdown. London's FTSE 100 closed up 0.3 per cent, boosted by banking stocks. Paris' CAC 40 added 0.2 per cent, while Frankfurt's DAX retreated 0.1 per cent. Earlier in Asia, major indices were mixed, with Tokyo's Nikkei 225 adding 0.5 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declining 0.5 per cent and the Shanghai Composite closing flat. In commodities, oil prices jumped nearly 2 per cent on Friday to post their first weekly gain in three weeks amid hopes for a US-China deal on tariffs and the jobs report. Brent rose 1.73 per cent to settle at $66.47 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate closed 1.91 per cent higher at $64.58 a barrel. Gold, meanwhile, fell more than 1 per cent on investor concerns that the US jobs report won't sway the Fed to cut rates soon. The precious metal, a hedge against inflation, declined nearly 1.3 per cent to $3,311.70 an ounce.
The National
a day ago
- The National
Trump presses Fed's Powell to cut interest rates by a full point
US President Donald Trump called on Jerome Powell to cut interest rates by a full percentage point on Thursday, ramping up his pressure on the Federal Reserve chair. Mr Trump's latest attacks on the Fed chair came shortly after a Labour Department report showed employers added 139,000 jobs last month, slower than its March gain but still above economists' projections. The unemployment rate remained steady at 4.2 per cent. ''Too Late' at the Fed is a disaster!,' Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to Mr Powell. 'Europe has had 10 rate cuts, we have had none. Despite him, our Country is doing great. Go for a full point, Rocket Fuel!' In a series of follow-up posts, Mr Trump claimed rate cuts would allow the US to lower short and long-term rates 'on debt that is coming due'. Mr Trump has regularly attacked Mr Powell in recent months over the Fed chair's caution in cutting interest rates. Mr Powell so far has resisted the pressure from the White House and maintains that policy decisions will be data dependent. He and other members on the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee are currently debating how Mr Trump's tariffs will affect the economy. Speaking in New York on Thursday, Fed Governor Adriana Kugler laid out her support for keeping rates at their current level due to rising inflation risks. Also speaking on Thursday, Kansas City Fed president Jeff Schmid said he expects tariffs will 'likely push up prices', with their effects not being 'fully apparent for some time'. The Fed, which has left rates unchanged for the past three meetings at roughly 4.3 per cent, will hold its next two-day meeting from June 17-18. The Fed's next blackout period begins at midnight on Saturday, meaning there will be no public communications from the central bank before it announces its next rate decision. Traders anticipate the Fed will keep rates unchanged through the summer, according to CME Group data.
Zawya
3 days ago
- Zawya
Wall Street futures edge up as investors await key jobs data
U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Thursday as investors looked ahead to the monthly jobs report to gauge the impact of President Donald Trump's trade policies on the labor market and the Federal Reserve's interest rate trajectory. Following Wednesday's weaker-than-expected U.S. private jobs and services sector data, Friday's non-farm payrolls report will come under sharp scrutiny as investors fear that Trump's erratic trade policies will drive a slowdown in economic growth. The data comes ahead of the Fed's policy decision later this month, where policymakers are widely expected to hold interest rates. Traders currently see at least two rate cuts by the end of this year, as per pricing in money markets. Despite continued calls from Trump to slash interest rates, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has opted to stand pat so far, awaiting further data to help dictate the policy decision as tariff volatility prevails. On Wednesday, Washington's doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum came to effect and it also marked Trump's deadline for trading partners to make their best offers to avoid other punishing import levies from taking effect in early July. Investors focused on tariff negotiations between Washington and trading partners, with Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping expected to speak sometime this week as tensions simmer between the world's two biggest economies. U.S. equities rallied sharply in May, with investors boosting the S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq to their biggest monthly percentage gain since November 2023, thanks to a softening of Trump's harsh trade stance and upbeat earnings reports. The S&P 500 remains nearly 3% below record highs touched in February. Data scheduled for Thursday include initial jobless claims and international trade data at 08:30 a.m. ET. U.S. central bank officials including Fed Board Governor Adriana Kugler, Fed Kansas City President Jeffrey Schmid and Fed Philadelphia President Patrick Harker are scheduled to speak later in the day. At 5:53 a.m. ET, Dow E-minis were up 45 points, or 0.11%, S&P 500 E-minis were up 3 points, or 0.05%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 10 points, or 0.05% Most megacap and growth stocks were mixed in premarket trading. Tesla fell 1.7%. Among early movers, shares of MongoDB jumped nearly 15% after the software company gave an upbeat annual forecast and reported quarterly results above estimates. (Reporting by Kanchana Chakravarty in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
