Gold futures prices extended their rally Wednesday, buoyed by geopolitical tensions focused on Syria and elsewhere that put the haven metal in demand, especially as stocks suffered anew.
U.S. data could also grab the market’s attention. The consumer-price index for March is due for release at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, with economists polled by MarketWatch forecasting headline prices to fall 0.1% and core prices to rise 0.2%.
Minutes from the Fed’s March 20-21 policy gathering, where the Jerome Powell central bank lifted interest rates for the fifth time since December of 2015, are due at 2 p.m. Eastern, with an update on the Federal budget due at the same time.
Check out: 5 things to watch from minutes of the Fed’s March meeting
June gold GCM8, +0.77% rose $8.30, or 0.6%, to $1,354.20 an ounce. Its close Tuesday at $1,345.90 marked its highest settlement since April 2, according to FactSet data tracking the most-active contracts.
Gold gained as the ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, -0.11% which measures the greenback against six major rivals, fell by 0.1% to 89.51, which helped supported dollar-denominated prices of gold. Stock futures pointed to a sharp drop at the open.
Investor attention has momentarily shifted from anxieties over trade conflicts between those the U.S. and China, which have eased somewhat, to concerns about a possible military strike against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for an alleged government-led chemical-weapons attack. Rising anxieties in the Middle East, and the possibility of drawing a response from Syrian allies, Iran and Russia, have attracted some investors to safety investments, including gold, the yen and bonds.
“Both yellow and ‘black’ golds [oil] are currently finding support from heightened fear among investors that the U.S. and its allies may soon launch a military strike against Syria,” said Fawad Razaqzada, technical analyst with Forex.com.
“Gold looks like it is about to finally break out after spending months in consolidation. A close above the bearish trend line at $1350/55 area could be the trigger,” he said.
Political tensions added to the climate. Renewed concerns that President Donald Trump will fire special counsel Robert Mueller or Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein—igniting a political furor in Washington, amid an expanding probe into the 2016 presidential campaign and its ties to Russia — also is pressuring assets perceived as risky and buoying havens.
In other metals trading, May silver SIK8, +0.27% used both for industrial purposes and as a haven financial asset, fell 0.1% to $16.58 an ounce.
In exchange-traded funds, the SPDR Gold Shares GLD, +0.24% gained 0.5%. The iShares Silver Trust SLV, +0.39% climbed 0.1%, while the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners GDX, +1.27% climbed 0.9%.
Meanwhile, copper for May delivery HGK8, -0.14% was little changed at $3.137 a pound on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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July platinum PLN8, +0.53% rose 0.5% to $937.40 an ounce, while June palladium PAM8, -0.01% traded at $950.65, up 0.1%.