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Commodities continued to perform well this week after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke assured investors that the central bank will not be dampening its quantitative easing too soon.
Commodities continued to perform well this week after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke assured investors that the central bank will not be dampening its quantitative easing too soon. The market struggled in June immediately after his original suggestion of ending the federal bond-buying program.
Today, spot gold increased $5.16, to $1,289.06, which puts it on track for its second weekly gain in a row, according to Reuters. Analysts believe it will see an overall jump of 0.5 percent for the week ending July 19; it rose 5 percent the previous week. US gold futures also rose today, gaining $4.30 to reach $1,288.60 an ounce.
Silver did not see much change today, only decreasing $0.10 since yesterday, to $19.33 an ounce. Earlier in the week, it increased slightly, but overall its movement has been minimal since last week. Thus, it seems as though the Fed’s reassurance has not helped silver rise as much as gold, but has at least kept the metal’s prices stable.
Similar to silver, copper was mostly unchanged today. That is due to a balancing of the weak US dollar and the Fed’s positive reassurance, according to Reuters. On the London Metal Exchange, three-month copper traded at $6,925 a tonne in official ring. The day prior it hit $6,900.
Earlier in the week, copper fell to its lowest price since July 10 due to a strengthening of the dollar and news of an increase in output at the world’s largest copper mine.
Oil prices increased across the world today due to strong demand. US oil for September rose $0.54, to $108.35 a barrel, and Brent for September gained $0.18 to hit $108.88. Crude has been on an incline all week due to declining US stockpiles, which signal the need for more supply globally.
Related reading:
Bernanke Doesn’t Understand Gold Prices, Yet Gold Climbs on Fed Reassurance
