Gold Spot Price Open: $1,249
Gold Spot Price Close: $1,225
Change in Gold Spot Price: -$24
Silver Spot Price Open: $19.86
Silver Spot Price Close: $19.43
Change in Silver Spot Price: -$0.43
Gold and silver fell sharply on Thursday as fears the Fed may taper Quantitative Easing are resounding loudly and clearly throughout the marketplace once more. When the day was through, gold lost almost 25 dollars while silver’s losses came closer to a half dollar. In all, both gold and silver more or less returned the gains they made on Wednesday thanks to an increased amount of bargain-hunting.
For yet another day, US economic data came in beating the expectations of the marketplace. Today’s US GDP report was strong while it was reported that weekly jobless claims dropped again. The greater the amount of positive economic news that continues to be produced by the United States, the more likely it is that the Federal Reserve will taper QE, or so that is how the market is thinking currently. With the December FOMC meeting just around the corner, investors are beginning to more eagerly accept the notion that QE may be tapered before the end of the year.
The European Central Bank’s monthly policy meeting kicked off today, though it was a mostly quiet affair. There were no changes made to monetary policy while the EU’s key lending rate remains the same as it was when it was reduced only a month ago. Though no policy shifts occurred as a result of the ECB meeting, the euro currency improved on some more dovish than anticipated remarks by ECB president Mario Draghi. In his statements, Draghi made it clear that EU monetary policy would remain accommodative for as long as him and the rest of the ECB deem necessary.
As we look ahead to the final day of the week, investors will be awaiting the most important piece of economic data released this week. The US jobs data for November is expected to see non-farm payrolls rise by over 175,000. Given the fact that this week’s ADP national employment report was already much stronger than expected, some investors are holding out that tomorrow’s data will exceed market expectations as well. Expect a busy day tomorrow as we bring the first full week of December to a close.
