Gold News & Info

Source:Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

AustinGold edged up 0.1% to close above $1,805 as weak consumer and employment data undercut equities and lifted demand for safe-haven assets. The metal ended the holiday-shortened week with a loss of 4%.

US jobless claims rose for a second week with 778,000 workers filing for first-time benefits, suggesting that the raging pandemic is forcing additional layoffs as new restrictions on commerce and travel take effect. Another 360,000 people filed under a separate federal program for workers who do not qualify for state benefits, bringing the total above 1.1 million last week.

Notably, jobless claims never rose above 660,000 per week during the worst of the Great Recession from 2007-2009, according to Reuters. Unless Congress passes another aid package, nearly 14 million Americans will lose their benefits the day after Christmas.

Consumer sentiment fell further in the final reading for November, according to the University of Michigan survey, marking the second straight month of declines as the pandemic has ramped up. Consumer confidence looking six months out was even less optimistic, dropping to a three-month low in data released yesterday by the Conference Board.

On the plus side, orders for durable goods leapt 1.3% in October behind sharp increases in military spending. Minus orders from the Pentagon, the increase was 0.2%.

Stocks were mixed on the net-negative data, with the Dow and S&P 500 retreating 0.6% and 0.2%, respectively, from record highs. Nasdaq added 0.5% to reach a new all-time high as stay-at-home tech firms like Apple and Etsy rallied behind new pandemic restrictions.

News about promising coronavirus vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, and AstraZeneca/Oxford University fueled risk appetite this week, propelling all three major US indexes to new highs despite many unanswered questions about availability and distribution. The vaccine euphoria pressured safe havens like gold, however, which tumbled yesterday to a four-month low.

The dollar slipped 0.3% against major rivals, supporting gold and other commodities priced in it for global trade by making them less expensive in other currencies.

The other precious metals were mixed for the day and week. Silver added 0.3% for a weekly loss of 4%. Platinum picked up 1.2% today and 1.8% this week. Palladium slipped 0.3% but still added 1.7% on the week.

At the Comex close: December gold added 90 cents, to $1,805.50; December silver rose 6 cents to $23.36; January platinum climbed $11.50 to $969.80; and March palladium slid $7.10 to $2,364.70 an ounce.