Gold prices rose on Tuesday, reaching their highest level in a week, as comments from U.S. Federal Reserve officials pointing to monetary easing boosted bets on interest rate cuts, while heightened tensions in Venezuela increased demand for safe-haven assets.
اضافة اعلان
Spot gold rose 0.4% to $4,465.32 per ounce as of 03:28 GMT, after jumping nearly 3% in the previous session.
Gold had hit an all-time high of $4,549.71 on December 26 and ended the year up 64%, marking its best annual performance since 1979.
U.S. gold futures for February delivery gained 0.3% to $4,465.70 per ounce.
“Elijah Spivak, Head of Global Macro at Tasty Live, said: ‘Federal Reserve officials’ comments certainly weren’t harmful, but the overall calculus doesn’t appear to have changed much. Of course, we have a busy week ahead with the jobs report due on Friday.’”
Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said on Monday that inflation is easing slowly, but there is a risk of a sudden rise in unemployment, increasing the likelihood of an interest rate cut.
Investors are currently pricing in at least two U.S. interest rate cuts this year, while awaiting Friday’s non-farm payrolls data for further clues on the monetary policy path the U.S. central bank may pursue.
Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro pleaded not guilty on Monday to drug-related charges, after his arrest raised concerns among world leaders.
The United States arrested Maduro on Saturday in an operation reportedly resulting in civilian casualties, while U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington would take control of the South American country.
Non-yielding assets tend to perform well in a low interest rate environment and during periods of geopolitical or economic instability.
As for other precious metals, spot silver surged 2.9% to $78.72 per ounce, after hitting a record high of $83.62 on December 29.
Spot platinum rose 2.5% to $2,327.17 per ounce, after reaching an all-time high of $2,478.50 last Monday. It had jumped more than 5% earlier in the session to hit a one-week high.
Palladium added 0.8% to $1,721.74 per ounce.
