Gold Drops on Firmer Dollar and Rising Bond Yields

Despite US President Donald Trump’s decision to pull the US from the Iran nuclear act, the price of gold fell on Wednesday (May 9) on the back of a stronger US dollar and rising bond yields.

Geopolitical concerns were not enough to keep the yellow metal in the green.

“The fact that the cat is out of the bag and we have the announcement [on Iran], that has removed some of the geopolitical support for gold,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen.

“The market instead has returned focus on the two key drivers for gold, which are bond yields and the dollar, and both are pointing the wrong direction from a higher gold perspective,” Hansen added.

Yields have the chance to climb even further this week, as a series of US bond auctions are set to take place.

This increase could add more pressure to the yellow metal, which could challenge the key US$1,300 support area.

The potential for additional US interest rate increases will also weigh on the precious metal, as Standard Chartered analyst Suki Cooper explained,“we continue to expect prices to test the downside in the lead-up to the June Federal Open Market Committe meeting as the market re-prices the Fed hiking trajectory.”

Trump’s decision to pull out of the landmark nuclear accord softened any further loses that gold could have experienced.

However, market watchers note that gold’s safe-haven nature means very little to investors right now – they are hedging bets on the greenback.

“It’s obvious that gold has some issues to deal with and is headed lower. Throughout much of the recent uncertainty when gold should have been rallying, it has not,” said Todd Horwitz at Kitco News.

“One thing we know about all markets — when they should be going up and they are not, that is an indication that there is more selling to come. Gold is in that category now. It should have been rallying but continues to show weakness, indicating that US$1,280 is just around the corner,” he added.

Looking forward, the uncertainty of what Trump’s actions mean for the US and the market may help boost gold prices.

“There’s still quite a bit of uncertainty about the future of the deal even now that the US has made its intentions clear,” said Brian Daingerfield, macro strategist at NatWest Markets.

If there is one thing that remains consistent, it is the yellow metal’s ability to rally during times of economic and political uncertainty.

As of 10:31 a.m. EST, gold was trading at US$1,315.40 per ounce.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Nicole Rashotte, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.