The prices of precious metals rose on Tuesday, with gold nearing $2,000 per ounce, as the US dollar extended its losses, slumping to a more than two-year low.
December gold futures on Comex were up around one percent, nearing the benchmark level of $2,000. Spot gold also added over one percent, trading at $1,987 per ounce. Meanwhile, silver has outperformed bullion’s gains, jumping around 1.8 percent to $29.11 per ounce.
The commodities’ rally came as the greenback fell to its lowest in over two years, after the US Federal Reserve announced a major policy shift on inflation. The US dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of currencies, dipped nearly 0.4 percent to 91.75 in midday trading. August marked a fourth straight month of declines for the US currency and the longest losing streak since the summer of 2017.
While bullion is below its all-time price record of over $2,089 per ounce, analysts say that the yellow metal is on course to hit new highs in 2020. According to Barry Stuppler, president of the California Coin & Bullion Merchants Association, the speech by Fed Chair Jerome Powell “was the final straw that was needed to push many well-respected professional commodity traders and financial analysts to become bullish on gold and take the price to $2,200 or more by year-end.”
Even more bullish forecasts say gold may hit $3,000 by year-end. This is according to RJO Futures senior commodities broker Daniel Pavilonis, who said that the metals are going up in price due “to the printing up of money.”
“As interest rates go lower or negative, investors have money in the bank that will be essentially taxed as they’d have to pay interest on it. What’s another alternative? This is why people are buying gold, taking delivery of gold bars, and buying futures,” Pavilonis said as cited by Kitco News.
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