Gold Spot Price Open: $1,113
Gold Spot Price Close: $1,106
Change in Gold Spot Price: -$7
Silver Spot Price Open: $15.18
Silver Spot Price Close: $15.05
Change in Silver Spot Price: -$0.13
For what is now a 4th consecutive day this week, precious metals fell thanks to a lack of fundamental support and a marketplace that is slowly but surely turning against precious metals. When all was said and done on Thursday, gold lost another 7 dollars while silver lost more than ten cents yet again. Platinum and palladium also fell in value today, with palladium losing more than 20 dollars.
Gold Lacking Support, Hits 7-Week Low
Precious metals did not perform well at all for another day this week, and gold did poorly enough to land itself on a fresh 7-week low. To put it simply, current market conditions do not favor gold and silver. With investors seemingly convincing themselves that interest rates are without a doubt going to be raised at December’s Fed meeting, the Dollar is surging and the desire to seek safety in precious metals is not nearly as strong as it was a week or two ago. While this is true of the short-term, the reality of the matter is that the last few months have seen the market react to the possibility of interest rate hikes in much the same way as they are reacting now.
For gold, which is now hovering just above the $1,100/ounce mark, the next few days will be pivotal. If the metal’s value dips below that crucial psychological threshold, there is no saying just how far the metal may decline. Silver and other precious metals are in a very similar situation and will need the Fed to strike down the possibility of 2015 rate hikes once and for all for any substantial gains to be realized. As fate would have it, tomorrow’s US employment data may play a very big role in determining the future of interest rates in the US.
Market Quiet as Jobs Data Awaited
Thursday was a mostly quiet day across the global marketplace as investors the world over were mostly content to hold their positions ahead of tomorrow’s US Labor Department report on October employment growth. The US Dollar made more gains on the day thanks to follow-through reactions to Yellen’s perceived leaving the door open to December rate hikes on Wednesday.
Also made public on Wednesday was the ADP employment report for October, which narrowly defied expectations. Compared to expectations of 180,000 private-sector jobs having been created last month, the actual ADP figures showed growth of 182,000. A disclaimer we always make is that the ADP report is no way of determining how the Labor Department’s report will shape up. Many times, the two reports clash, so investors really have no idea what to expect from tomorrow’s report. Thanks to the last month’s worth of data, however, expectations are fairly low as weekly unemployment reports have been lackluster as of late. In addition, we have heard numerous reports of companies halting hiring or slowing their acquisition of new employees, so it is hard for investors to anticipate overly great news tomorrow.
Wrap-Up
The biggest news on Thursday was that of investors mostly holding positions in anticipation of Friday’s jobs data. To be truthful, there wasn’t all that much to talk about, and investors are now solely focused on any and all US economic data they can get their hands on. Tomorrow will be an eventful day, but it is difficult to say which way the employment data will go.
