Gold rises for fourth day as focus remains on geopolitical risks
BUSINESS: Gold rose for a fourth day as investors focused on Russia’s escalation of its war with Ukraine. Bullion traded above $2,660 an ounce after Ukraine said Russia fired an intercontinental ballistic missile at the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro. The attack marks the first reported use of an ICBM, designed to hit targets thousands of kilometres away, since the start of the invasion. The precious metal tends to benefit as geopolitical tensions rise.
Bullion is recouping losses suffered shortly after Donald Trump’s victory in the US election, which sent the US dollar higher. Gold has risen about 30% this year and is widely expected to hit new records in 2025, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and UBS Group AG both issuing bullish signals in recent days.
In the US, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Susan Collins said further interest rate cuts are needed but policymakers should proceed cautiously. Lower rates usually benefit gold because it does not have to pay interest.
Investors will remain worried that the Fed may slow or pause its rate-cutting cycle due to the possibility of rising inflation after Trump becomes president, according to Priyanka Sachdeva, market analyst at Phillip Nova Pte Ltd.
Spot gold was up 0.6%% at $2,667.46 an ounce at 10:10 a.m. in London. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.01%% after gaining 0.4% on Wednesday. Silver rose to above $31 an ounce, while platinum and palladium were little changed.
