The rally of the US Dollar Index in the first session of the week put pressure on the precious metal priced in USD. Earlier this morning, the US Dollar Index rose 0.31% to 101.38 points, taking away the attractiveness of gold for buyers holding foreign currencies.
New economic data is also negative for gold. Specifically, the Purchasing Managers' Index in the manufacturing sector remained in contractionary territory but rose more than expected to 49.3 after reaching 46 in June. Economists forecast steady activity with a rise of 46.1.
The report also said activity in the manufacturing sector rose to a three-month high. Meanwhile, activity in the service sector fell to a five-month low.
New economic data is also negative for gold. Specifically, the Purchasing Managers' Index in the manufacturing sector remained in contractionary territory but rose more than expected to 49.3 after reaching 46 in June. Economists forecast steady activity with a rise of 46.1.
The report also said activity in the manufacturing sector rose to a three-month high. Meanwhile, activity in the service sector fell to a five-month low.
Comment:
Economic data provides no impetus for the gold market; however, gold is holding the support at $1,950 an ounce. Chris Williamson, chief economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said July got off to a disappointing start and the data could continue to highlight recession threats.
Comment:
Gold prices traded in a tight range on Monday (July 24) as investors awaited a rate hike as expected by the market along with clues on future monetary policy from the US Federal Reserve (Fed) this week.
Comment:
However, the focus of the market is still on the interest rate decision of the US Central Bank on Wednesday (July 26), followed by the European Central Bank (ECB) policy meeting on Thursday (July 27). Both are expected to raise interest rates.
Comment:
Gold is very sensitive to interest rate hikes because it increases the opportunity cost of owning a non-yielding asset like gold.
Comment:
“Any unexpected dovish signal, especially from the Fed, could positively support gold, with fresh opportunities to move towards the $2,000 mark,” Carlo Alberto De Casa, market analyst at Kinesis Money, said in a note.
Comment:
At the time of the survey, the USD Index, a measure of the greenback's strength against its peers in a basket of currencies, was up 0.3% to 101.105.
Comment:
Meanwhile, the price of gold bought in euros hit its highest since July 5 at the beginning of the session on July 25 after data showed that business activity in the euro area (Eurozone) fell more than expected in July, according to Reuters.
Comment:
In other precious metals markets, silver fell 0.7% to $24.39 an ounce, platinum fell 0.1% to $961.01 and palladium fell 1% to $1,277.84.
Comment:
In a note, UBS experts forecast that platinum could experience a shortage of supply in the remaining months of 2023 because of its alternative use in automotive emission-reduction catalytic converters and low supply from South Africa.
Comment:
The precious metal experts said that the direction of gold in the near future largely depends on the statement of Fed Chairman Jerome Powell at the press conference.
Comment:
According to Moya, if the Fed continues to make the option of tightening further and the upcoming economic data is positive, it will likely cause gold to fall deeply.
