Gold tops $1,160/oz after US dollar slides

The spot gold price topped $1,160 per oz during Asian trading hours on Friday December 30 after the US dollar weakened on Thursday.

The spot gold price was recently quoted at $1,161.30/1,161.70 per oz, up $1.20 on the previous close. Trade has ranged from $1,157.90 to $1,163.28 so far, the higher end being the highest since December 14.

The US dollar has eased amid quiet trading during year-end holidays, providing a boost for gold and silver prices, China’s Zhengjin Precious Metals said on Friday morning. The broker sees short-term support for the yellow metal at $1,150 per oz and resistance at $1,190.

The US dollar index had dipped as low as 101.53 on Thursday, the lowest since December 14. The index has since rebounded 0.23% to 102.30 recently on Friday.

In US data released on Thursday, weekly unemployment claims beat expectations at 265,000, but the November goods trade balance undershot at -65.3 billion, while preliminary wholesale inventories for November disappointed at 0.9%.

It is a light day for data with mainly the Spanish flash CPI and US Chicago PMI of note later today.

In other commodities, the Brent crude oil spot price recently fell 0.32% to $56.76 per barrel.

In equities, the Shanghai Composite has risen 0.16% to 3,101.10 so far today.

In the other precious metals, the spot silver price increased $0.033 to $16.220/16.245 per oz. Platinum gained $3 to $902/907 per oz, and palladium rose $3 to $670/675 per oz.

On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, gold for June delivery was recently at 270.75 yuan ($39) per gram, and the June silver was at 4,115 yuan per kg.

(Editing by Kyle Docherty)

The post Gold tops $1,160/oz after US dollar slides appeared first on The Bullion Desk.

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