Gold slid over 1% on Thursday, falling to its lowest level in two weeks, as investors squared positions to focus on US economic data that could offer additional insights into the timing of the Federal Reserve’s potential interest rate cuts.
Spot gold fell 1.2% to $2,369.29 per ounce by 1302 GMT, having touched its lowest since July 10. U.S. gold futures dropped 1.9% to $2,368.80.
“Much like the pivot we are witnessing in the stock market, market participants may be shifting from gold to other areas… while profit-taking may also be playing a role,” said Zain Vawda, market analyst at MarketPulse by OANDA.
Stock markets were locked in a multi-trillion-dollar tailspin on Thursday due to a slump in global tech stocks.
“I think from an institutional perspective the profit-taking could be attributed to repositioning and reallocations to other sectors. A significant correction has been long overdue,” Vawda added.
The markets are awaiting the personal consumption expenditure (PCE) data on Friday to calibrate their expectations of the timing of rate cuts by the Fed.
Markets see a 100% chance of a rate cut in September, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. Non-yielding bullion’s appeal tends to shine in a low-interest rate environment.
Meanwhile, on the physical front, JP Morgan said “while softer Chinese demand remains a risk, we think one of the most important elements of physical demand in the gold market is its price responsiveness to dips, essentially acting as a trailing price floor in gold.”
pot silver shed 4.8% to $27.6 per ounce on the day, hitting a 11-week low.
“We are observing a strong decline in silver and the platinum group metals (PGMs), which seems to be largely influenced by the weakness in certain equity markets spilling over into the industrial metals sector,” said Quantitative Commodity Research analyst Peter Fertig.
Platinum eased 1.5% to $933.68, near a three-month low, and palladium slipped 2.9% to $905.32.
