Gold Spot Price Open: $1,335
Gold Spot Price Close: $1,340
Change in Gold Spot Price: +$5
Silver Spot Price Open: $20.33
Silver Spot Price Close: $20.20
Change in Silver Spot Price: -$0.13
Gold and silver both spun their wheels to close out what has been a less than stellar week. When all was said and done, gold managed to gain about 5 dollars while silver lost in upwards of 15 cents. Platinum and palladium both also lost, but platinum’s losses were more significant as they closed in on 15 dollars.
Focus Turns to US Presidential Race
Today, many investors were preoccupied with Donald Trump, the presumed Republican nominee for president, and his choosing his running mate. At this juncture we are learning that Mike Pence, governor of Indiana, is the likely person who will be joining Trump. For gold and silver this is not very significant at the present moment, but might be in the long run seeing as Pence is far more conservative than the man he is running beside. His Tea Party involvement may end up affecting the precious metals market in some regard, but for now the reaction to Pence’s presumed VP candidate role has been relatively calm.
Over the course of the coming months you can expect that investors both in the US and elsewhere around the world will begin to turn their focus on the upcoming US presidential election, which takes place this upcoming November.
USD Moves Forward on Upbeat Retail Sales Report
Putting some pressure on gold and silver today was a US Dollar that jumped forward yet again. This time it was a better than expected, and generally upbeat, retail sales report from the month of June. Officially, retail sales in June jumped by .6%, adding to a .2% jump recorded in May. June’s performance beat the expectations of economists polled by Bloomberg and shows that perhaps US consumers are more confident than previously believed.
With jobs and wages growing at what can be described as a steady rate, the average American household has more disposable income and that is translating into better bottom lines for retailers. Adding to the boost in consumer spending is the fact that oil prices are headed back down. A report released earlier this week showed that global supplies of crude oil are once again edging higher and higher. This is always going to be something that helps drive down the price at the pump and bolster the wallet of the average citizen. All in all, this report was great for the US economy but not so great for gold and silver. In fact, this week as a whole played host to a lot of upbeat data and that is largely to blame for precious metals’ rather poor performance.
Wrap-Up
Apart from the retail sales report, the other big story of the day came overnight in Nice, France where a terrorist attack laid claim to more than 80 lives. There is still a lot unknown about what happened, but the story is that a lone man boarded a large truck and drove through a large crowd of people who were gathering to watch a fireworks display. The man was eventually taken out by law enforcement ammunition, but not before nearly 85 lives were taken. Come markets open on Monday we are hoping to know more about the details surrounding this incident as well as who is responsible.
Looking ahead to next week, the marketplace will slowly but surely become preoccupied with the fast-approaching FOMC meeting. With interest rate hikes still very much a possibility, investors will be speculating and looking for any clues as to what the future might hold for US monetary policy. Just this week we were given quotes from Fed members who think that one, and maybe even two, rate hikes are still possible before year’s end.
