Gold slips as trade worries ease

Gold extended losses from the previous session on Friday and was set to post its first weekly fall in five as positive developments around the Sino-US trade negotiations rekindled investors appetite for riskier assets.

However, prices were still set for a fourth straight monthly gain on concerns about a slowdown in global economic growth.

Spot gold slipped 0.2% to $1,524.43/oz, as of 4.04am GMT, after falling as much as 1% in the previous session. For the week, it is headed for a mild loss of about 0.1%.

US gold futures were also down 0.2% at $1,533.50/oz.

“Last night’s [Sino-US] trade war news resulted in gains in stock markets. We saw yields climb very marginally in bond markets overnight, and that prompted a little bit of a flurry of risk taking and a sell-off in gold,” said IG Markets analyst Kyle Rodda.

US President Donald Trump said some trade discussions were taking place on Thursday, with more talks scheduled.

China’s commerce ministry said a September round of meetings was being discussed by the two sides, but added that it was important for Washington to cancel a tariff increase.

US Treasury yields rose on Thursday, with 30-year yields climbing from record lows, while Asian equities jumped to a one-week high on Friday.

Still, concerns surrounding global economic growth and expectations for monetary policy easing by central banks around the globe have propelled the yellow metal towards a monthly gain, keeping prices near multiyear highs.

Bullion scaled a more than six-year high of $1,554.56/oz on Monday and is set to rise about 8% for the month.

“Gold prices remain pretty well supported because the risks in the trade war haven’t changed and the outlook on the global economy hasn’t changed pretty much. That means there are still bets on major interest rate cuts from global central banks,” Rodda said.

Federal funds futures implied traders saw a 96% chance of a 25 basis-point rate cut by the US central bank in September.

Spot silver gained 0.1% to $18.25/oz, after matching a high last seen in April 2017 in the last session. It was set to post its biggest monthly gain since June 2016.

Platinum was flat at $916/oz, after touching its highest since April 2018 in the previous session. It was up over 6% so far in August, en route to its biggest monthly gain since January 2018.

Palladium rose 0.6% to $1,483/oz, but was set for a second straight monthly decline.

Reuters