Gold futures rallied on Wednesday, with prices looking to settle at their highest levels since late August after an explosion at a Gaza City hospital prompted investors to shun risky assets and seek safety in the precious metal.
Over the last 12 months, most-active gold futures have seen a return of 18.95%, according to Dow Jones Market Data. The price return for the S&P 500 is 17.11% and total return is 18.93%. “Risk aversion has up-ticked at midweek,” said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst at Kitco.com, as the Middle East violence flares up.
“Therefore, it is not going to take much to slam gold back down,” said Razaqzada. “Perhaps if there’s a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, then that could be the trigger” for gold’s decline. Tuesday saw a raft of U.S. economic data, with retail sales, manufacturing and industrial production, and capacity utilization for September, all coming in higher than expected, he said in market commentary. “With further evidence of U.S. economic resilience, interest rates have continued to track higher, creating headwinds for non-yielding assets, such as gold.”