Gold up for 6th Week on Virus, Economy and Biden Prospects
Investing.com
Published Jul 17, 2020 04:04PM ET
By Barani Krishnan
Investing.com - Gold coasted to a sixth-straight winning week on Friday as a new spike in the coronavirus, uncertainty for the global economy, and prospects of a Joe Biden victory in the U.S. presidential election continued to lure investors toward the safe-haven.
U.S. gold futures for August delivery on Comex settled up $9.70, or 0.5%, at $1,810 per ounce.
Spot gold, the real-time indicator of bullion prices, rose by $14, or 0.8%, to $1,811.17.
For the week, Comex gold rose 0.5% while bullion gained 0.7%.
Gold prices have gained roughly $130 an ounce, or 8%, since the week ended May 31, rallying back-to-back for six weeks now.
“Gold prices are steadily rising as investors start to raise their stimulus expectations on coronavirus second wave fears,” said Ed Moya, senior markets strategist at New York-based OANDA.
The United States shattered its daily record for coronavirus infections, prompting some states to impose partial lockdowns, while the number of global cases crossed 13.89 million.
A sharp rise in stimulus packages globally to shield economies from the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic has driven safe-haven gold prices 19.3% higher so far this year.
U.S. lawmakers return to Washington on Monday to discuss potential new coronavirus aid programs, while investors also eyed a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels about a proposed stimulus to kick-start their Covid-hit economies.
Covid-19 aside, election risk was also factoring in for U.S.-based investors in gold as polls increasingly show former Vice President Joe Biden leading President Donald Trump in the run-up to the November 3 election, said Moya.
“Wall Street can’t ignore the polls anymore and (has) start(ed) to price in the risk of a Biden Presidency,” he added.
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