Gold price reaches new annual highs and climbs to 1,326 US$/ounce

An exciting week for gold investors lies behind us. Janet Yellen (Fed) and Mario Draghi (ECB) made their much anticipated statements on Friday which did not make headlines and refrained from any precise comments on the monetary policy of the respective central bank. Market observers interpreted this as a signal that it will likely remain expansive. Neither – to the surprise of analysts – did Draghi remark upon the euro’s current strength, which was seen as proof of the ECB’s current carefreeness.

What followed was a further rise for the euro, alongside a slump for returns and market interest of US government bonds, which intensified on Tuesday morning, when investors increasingly sought refuge in safe havens. This came as a result of North Korea’s renewed missile test launches, this time aimed in the direction of Japan.  

The euro rose to 1.2070, a two-and-a-half-year high. The returns of ten-year US government bonds, in turn, fell to 2.09 per cent and investors sought safe havens.

This, of course, also affected the development of the gold price. In US dollar, Gold traded at 1,287 per ounce last Friday. On Tuesday morning, it rose to 1,326 US$/ounce, its highest since the US election night on 8 November 2016. It was also the first time this year that the 1,300 US$/ounce mark was sustainably exceeded. On Tuesday afternoon, the US dollar rose and investors calmed regarding the North Korea issue, causing gold to recede to 1,300 US$/ounce, where it firmly and impressively held its ground. Yesterday evening, it again rose to 1,323 US$/ounce and currently trades around 1,320 US$/ounce, making for a sound weekly gain.  

In euro, gold also stands firmer than a week ago. From 35.10 €/gram last Friday, the price of Xetra-Gold rose continuously to 35.70 €/gram yesterday afternoon. It currently trades only slightly lower at 35.67 €/gram. This afternoon, we will see the publication of US labour market data and next week, the focus will be on Thursday’s ECB meeting.

A happy and relaxing weekend to all our readers.