Gold slips amid hopes of easing US-China trade tensions
Spot gold was down 1.5% at $3,296.19 an ounce as of 1136 GMT. It hit a record high earlier this week.
U.S. gold futures shed 1.3% to $3,306.50.
'Gold is facing challenges in sustaining its upward momentum as optimism around a potential U.S.-China trade agreement grows,' said Zain Vawda, analyst at MarketPulse by OANDA.
China has exempted some U.S. imports from its 125% tariffs and is asking firms to identify critical goods they need levy-free, according to businesses notified. China has not yet communicated publicly on any exemptions.
The U.S. dollar jumped, making bullion more expensive for overseas buyers.
'A U.S.-China trade agreement could push gold down toward $3,000/oz or lower, depending on other influencing factors,' Vawda said.
Gold, traditionally seen as a hedge against geopolitical and economic uncertainties has gained more than 25% so far this year. It also touched a record high of $3,500.05 on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Federal Reserve officials indicated they saw no urgency in revising U.S. monetary policy as they sought more information to determine how Trump's tariffs were affecting the economy.
Non-yielding bullion tends to thrive in a low interest rate environment.
Meanwhile, gold discounts in India jumped this week to the highest level in nearly nine years as high prices deterred buyers, while premiums in China rose to a more than one-year peak.
Spot silver fell 0.8% to $33.31 an ounce, platinum also dropped 0.8% at $962.91 and palladium shed 2.1% to $933.67.
Silver was headed for weekly gains, while both platinum and palladium were seen falling for the week.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Australian shares cross 8,900 level for first time, banks do the heavy lifting
AUSTRALIAN shares crossed the key 8,900 level for the first time on Friday, buoyed by gains in major banks as investors piled into financials despite stretched valuations on hopes that rate cuts would spur credit and economic growth. The S&P/ASX 200 index was up 0.2% at 8,894.60, as of 0103 GMT, after briefly crossing the 8,900 mark earlier in the day. The benchmark touched an all-time high of 8,901.80 points. The index was up about 1% for the week in what would be its second straight weekly gain. The Reserve Bank of Australia cut the cash rate by 25 basis points on Tuesday, matching market expectations, and leaving its door open for further policy easing this year to meet inflation and employment goals as the economy has lost some momentum. Financial and real estate stocks are expected to benefit from lower cash rates, which usually lead to higher lending volumes. Banks have risen 0.3% so far this week in what could be their third straight week of gains. Top lender CBA was down 0.3% for the day and set to log a weekly loss of 5.6%, its worst since mid-February. CBA reported a record annual profit on Wednesday, but investors dumped its shares on valuation concerns. Shares of ANZ were trading 1.3% higher after the country's fourth-largest bank in terms of market value reported a rise in deposits and loans for the third quarter. Tony Sycamore, market analyst at IG, also credited the index's momentum to strong corporate earnings of this week, including from Westpac, Suncorp and Origin. Real estate stocks climbed 0.2%, with Charter Hall Retail REIT and Goodman Group rising about 0.3% each. Miners climbed 0.6% even after iron ore prices closed lower overnight. BHP and Rio Tinto climbed 0.6% each, while Fortescue rose 1.3%. New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index rose 0.3% to 12,865.81. - Reuters
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Asia markets stumble as hot PPI print reins in Fed rate cut hype
SINGAPORE: Stocks in Asia made an uneven recovery as higher-than-expected producer price inflation dampened expectations of a jumbo rate cut at the Federal Reserve's September meeting, while US bonds and equity futures stabilised. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.3 per cent after a report on Thursday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics which showed the Producer Price Index increased 0.9 per cent in July on a month-over-month basis, well above economists' expectations. "What it did was to get rid of all the chat about a 50 basis point cut," said Mike Houlahan, director at Electus Financial Ltd in Auckland. The market is currently pricing in a 92.1 per cent probability of a 25 basis point rate cut at its September meeting, compared with a 100 per cent likelihood of a cut on Thursday, according to the CME Group's FedWatch tool. The chance of a jumbo 50 basis point cut fell to 0 per cent from an earlier expectation of 5.7 per cent a day ago. US stock futures were flat in early Asian trading after ending a choppy trading session on Wall Street with mild gains on Thursday. The yield on the US 10-year Treasury bond was down 1 basis point at 4.2829 per cent. The two-year yield, which is sensitive to traders' expectations of Fed fund rates, slipped to 3.7304 per cent compared with a US close of 3.739 per cent. Nasdaq futures extended losses into a third consecutive day, sliding 0.1 per cent lower. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of currencies of other major trading partners, retraced some gains after the PPI data release, last trading down 0.1 per cent at 98.143. The Nikkei 225 rebounded 0.4 per cent after snapping a six-day winning streak on Thursday with its biggest one-day selloff since April 11, as Japanese GDP data showed the economy expanding by an annualised 1.0 per cent in the April-June quarter, beating analyst estimates. The dollar weakened 0.3 per cent against the yen to 147.64. Australian shares were last up 0.2 per cent, while stocks in Hong Kong were down 0.9 per cent following losses on Thursday for US-listed exchange-traded funds tracking Chinese companies. The CSI 300 gave up early gains and was last trading flat after the release of weaker-than-expected Chinese economic data for July including retail sales and industrial production. Markets in India and South Korea are closed for public holidays. Cryptocurrency markets stabilised after a new record for bitcoin of US$124,480.82 on Thursday proved fragile and promptly crumbled after falling short of its next key milestone. The digital currency was last up 0.7 per cent, recovering some ground, while ether gained 1.7 per cent. "Bitcoin's failure to conquer the US$125,000 resistance signals another consolidation phase," said Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG in Sydney. In commodities markets, Brent crude was flat at US$66.94 per barrel ahead of a meeting in Alaska between US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Gold was slightly lower as the markets digested the path of inflation-adjusted interest rates, which typically move in the opposite direction from bullion prices. Spot gold was trading up 0.1 per cent at US$3,339 per ounce.
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Gold poised for weekly fall as bets fade for big Fed rate cut
NEW YORK: Gold was subdued on Friday and was heading for a weekly fall, as hotter than expected US inflation data dented expectations for a super sized 50 basis point US interest rate cut in September. Spot gold was down 0.1 per cent at US$3,333.58 per ounce, as of 0120 GMT. Bullion has fallen 1.9 per cent for the week. US gold futures for December delivery eased 0.1 per cent to US$3,378.90. The Labor Department reported the US producer price index (PPI) rose 3.3 per cent year-on-year in July, beating forecasts of 2.5 per cent while weekly jobless claims were lower than expected at 224,000 versus 228,000 forecast. This comes after data on Tuesday showed that US consumer prices increased marginally in July, increasing chances of a Federal Reserve rate cut next month. While Thursday's hot PPI data did not dent chances of a Fed rate cut in September, it hurt the case for the Fed to resume cutting rates with a 50 bp reduction. St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem on Thursday said a half-point rate cut at the Fed's September meeting is not warranted, a day after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said it was possible. Non-yielding gold thrives in a low-interest-rate environment. Investors will next focus on whether Fed Chair Jerome Powell offers any fresh clues on policy at the US central bank's annual economic policy symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, next week. On the geopolitical front, investors are tempering expectations that Friday's summit between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will deliver a significant breakthrough on the war in Ukraine despite some hopeful sign. SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 0.30 per cent to 961.35 metric tons on Thursday from 964.22 tons on Wednesday. Elsewhere, spot silver rose 0.2 per cent to US$37.89 per ounce, platinum fell 0.3 per cent to US$1,351.78 and palladium slipped 0.4 per cent to US$1,140.69.
