Gold holds biggest jump in two months on Iran peace-deal hopes
Gold steadies after a two-month jump tied to Iran peace-talk hopes, as energy markets swing and inflation pressure tests central banks.
Gold was steady, after jumping the most in two months on Monday as hopes of a breakthrough in US-Iran peace talks sent oil prices plunging and eased anxiety over accelerating inflation.
Bullion traded around $3,950 an ounce, having climbed 1.9 per cent in the previous session. Oil was flat following a tumble of more than 7 per cent on Monday, after the Iranian president said his government has been granted more authority by the country’s supreme leader to pursue negotiations, and US President Donald Trump hinted at progress in the discussions.
The Middle East war — now in its ninth month — has sent energy prices and inflation surging, putting pressure on central banks to raise borrowing costs, which is negative for gold as it doesn’t pay interest.
The precious metal slumped 6.8 per cent in October, breaking decisively below the $4,000 an ounce threshold at the end of the month to hit a one-year low. It was caught up in a retreat from artificial intelligence last week, prompting investors to liquidate bullion holdings to cover losses elsewhere. That’s left gold vulnerable to further declines, as Asian tech stocks headed for more losses on Tuesday after a selloff in US chipmakers deepened.
US voters head to the polls on Tuesday for the midterm elections. For gold, what matters is how the election shapes the fiscal narrative, said wealth manager Noah Holdings Ltd.
Gold is sensitive to US Treasury interventions in the bond market, the government’s reliance on short-term debt and the Federal Reserve’s ability to keep short-term interest rates in check, according to emailed comments from the company’s investment office. Whether the election result affects those scenarios could indirectly impact bullion prices, it said.
Spot gold was little changed at $3,944.23 an ounce as of 10:22 a.m. in Singapore. Silver was down 0.8 per cent at $50.23, after rising more than 3 per cent on Monday. Platinum edged higher, while palladium fell slightly. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, a gauge of the US currency, was steady after falling 0.3 per cent over the previous two sessions.
Source: BusinessLine Markets
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