AGE Daily Gold Update

AGE Daily Gold Update presents a recap on today's action in the precious metals markets. View archives.

3/15/2024: Gold has first down week four

Source: Bill Musgrave, American Gold Exchange

Austin — Gold dipped 0.3% to close at $2,161.50 as a shifting outlook for rate cuts from the Fed lifted the dollar and yields, undercutting alternative stores of value. The gold price fell 0.8% this week to notch its first weekly loss in more than a month. Silver gained 1.3% to $25.20 today, on its way to a whopping 8% rally this week.

Import prices rose 0.3% in February after rising 0.8% the month before, adding to the upturn in US inflation. While prices on imported goods are still 0.8% lower than a year ago, the deflationary trend has notably reversed in recent months.

Coming after elevated CPI and PPI this week, the rising import-price data underlines the inconvenient truth that inflation is stickier than the Fed would like to see before cutting interest rates.

Against this background, March manufacturing activity tumbled deeply into contraction in the New York Fed region, falling to negative 20.9, where readings under zero signify deterioration. Often seen as a bellwether for national manufacturing, the Empire State index has been negative in five of the past six months.

Still, sticky inflation is causing Fed fund futures traders to shift their rate-cut expectations. The likelihood of a quarter-point reduction in June has fallen to 55%, down from more than 73% one week ago.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields edged up above 4.3%, the highest nearly a month. Higher yields pressure gold by increasing the opportunity cost for holding it instead of bonds as a safe-haven asset.

Tracking with yields, the dollar added 0.1% against major rivals to post a weekly gain of 0.7%, its biggest since mid-January. A rising dollar weighs on gold by making it pricier overseas.

Platinum rose 0.8% today and 3.1% this week. Palladium added 1.1% for a weekly rise of 6.3%.

At the New York spot close: gold dipped $6 to $2,161.50; silver rose 33 cents to $25.20; platinum picked up $7.80 to $943.50; and palladium advanced $11.70 to $1,090.30 an ounce.