Gold prices failed to derive a significant support from the Trump impeachment theme, mainly due to the fact that there is no a real threat to his presidency as the Senate is controlled by Republicans. By the way, global markets shrugged off these political developments in the United States. After a brief spike above the $1,481 handle yesterday, the precious metal got back below $1,480 but remains close to this level on Friday.
The upside pressure in the market is limited amid the renewed trade optimism after both Washington and Beijing confirmed that they have finalized the phase one deal and will sign it in January. Further signs of de-escalation in relationship between the world’s two largest economies supported European stocks during the last trading day of the week and sent the Wall Street indices to fresh all-time highs at the start of the session.
Against this backdrop, the yellow metal shifted back into a consolidation mode after yesterday’s short-term rally. In the weekly charts, the bullion is marginally higher but remains relatively muted and low after a massive plunge witnessed in early-November, when the prices declined from $1,514 down to early-August lows in the $1,445 region. Since then, the prices managed to trim losses but still look weak.
At the same time, there are some signs suggesting the yellow metal may have already bottomed and could rise from the current levels, probably by another 10-15% in the medium term. Interestingly, it doesn’t mean that equities will fall in this scenario. In the context of a Federal Reserve’s dovish stance, for example, gold prices may rise in tandem with stocks in particular and risky assets in general.
Should the bullion attract demand, the next target will come around $1,500. This is the key psychological level to watch, as a recovery above this threshold will reinforce the bullish stance of this market. Once above, the precious metal will shift focus to $1,650 and then probably to about $1,700. On the downside, the initial support comes around $1,470 and then at $1,450.