The Federal Reserve's commitment to bring inflation down to its 2% target is creating some much-needed confidence in the long end of the yield curve as 10-year bond yields fall back below 5.00%; however, according to one fund manager, gold remains the ultimate safe-haven insurance play.
The gold market continues to trade near its session highs, solidly above $4,300 an ounce, and could see further safe-haven demand as the U.S. housing sector remains extremely fragile, with the number of consumers starting the process of buying a new home stalling, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
Gold prices are trading near session highs on Thursday morning following the release of better than expected labor market data after the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits came in below economists' forecasts.
Gold prices are trading near session highs this morning after the latest data showed the U.S. housing market delivering a weaker-than-expected performance last month.Housing starts fell 2.6% in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.275 million units, the Commerce Department announced on Thursday. The data was worse than expected as economists looked for a rise to 1.310 million units.
The gold market is once again holding its own above critical near-term support, even as the U.S. manufacturing sector appears to be more resilient than economists had expected, according to the latest regional data from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve.
The gold market is trading just off its session highs after the Bank of England decided to leave interest rates unchanged following its September monetary policy meeting.
Gold edged up in early Asian trade after slipping in the wake of the Fed's first rate hike in over three years.
Gold breaks 50-day support, but a falling wedge keeps a bullish breakout scenario alive above $4,367.
The gold market was able to withstand an expected rate hike and forecasts for additional tightening later this year; however, the precious metal took a bruising as Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh came out swinging hard during his press conference.
The Federal Reserve announced on Wednesday that the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) voted unanimously in favor of a quarter-point rate hike, as expected by the market consensus, while the latest economic projections showed all but two policymakers believe another rate hike will be warranted in 2026.
Persistent fiscal deficits, ballooning sovereign debt and rising geopolitical fragmentation are forcing investors to rethink what constitutes a safe-haven asset, and one digital asset executive says the answer increasingly includes both gold and Bitcoin.
A fairly resilient economy, coupled with persistent inflation, has made higher interest rates in the second half of 2026 a foregone conclusion, which could weigh on gold prices in the near term; however, one market strategist suggests that lower prices could represent a long-term buying opportunity.