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Gold futures inched higher Tuesday as bullion headed for a third straight positive finish and approached a psychologically significant figure around $1,800 its highest settlement in almost two weeks.
December gold
GCZ21,
was trading $4.40, or 0.3%, higher at $1,794.20 an ounce, a day after rising 0.7% and booking the loftiest finish since Aug. 5, FactSet data show. A third straight gain for the contract would match the longest string of advances since the period ended July 15.
Gold has enjoyed buying from uncertainty about the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus and its impact on the economies of countries like China, one of the biggest purchasers of commodities, analysts said.
However, some experts say bullion isn’t out of the woods after the precious metal sold off last week, following a report for July released on Aug. 6 from the Labor Department that showed that the U.S. created 943,000 jobs in July in a sign the economic jobs recovery gained steam and may result in the Federal Reserve tightening monetary policy.
“Sustained buying brought the price closer to $1800, almost recovering from a violent two-day selloff after a strong [nonfarm payrolls report],” wrote Alex Kuptsikevich, senior financial analyst at FxPro.
“Despite steady buying, downside risks still prevail in gold,” wrote the analyst.
“The bulls can only be serious after the price returns above $1800, where the long-term support and the 50-day moving average are located,” FxPro said.
Kuptsikevich says that an increase above that price might not only increase the current momentum, “but it could also bring back the long-term buyers in the precious metal after the 12-month correction from the historical peaks.”
