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Gold nears one-month high, set for seventh straight monthly rise
Spot gold was up 1% at $5,238.75 an ounce by 11:31 a.m. ET (1631 GMT), hitting its highest level since January 30. Prices climbed 7.6% so far in February.
U.S. gold futures for April delivery rose 1.1% to $5,254.
“There’s a lot of nervousness surrounding geopolitics, you have all the set-up for a high probability of a military operation over the weekend, so it’s a risk-off in a flight to safety,” said Phillip Streible, chief market strategist at Blue Line Futures.
The United States and Iran made progress in Thursday’s nuclear talks, mediator Oman said, but hours of negotiations ended without a breakthrough that could avert possible U.S. strikes amid a major military buildup.
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Meanwhile, the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem also permitted non-emergency staff and families to leave Israel citing safety risks.
U.S. 10-year Treasury yields slipped to a three-month low, making non-yielding gold more attractive by lowering its opportunity cost. Gold’s next likely upside target is $5,450, with key support near $5,120, Streible said.
Data showed that U.S. producer prices increased more than expected in January, suggesting inflation could pick up in the months ahead.
Markets are pricing in about a 42% chance of a 25-basis-point U.S. Federal Reserve rate cut in June, as per the CME FedWatch tool.
Elsewhere, top consumer China’s net gold imports via Hong Kong in January rose by 68.7% from December, Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department data showed.
China’s central bank moved to curb the yuan’s rise by removing risk-reserve rules for forex forwards, encouraging more dollar buying.
Spot silver rose 6% to $93.67 an ounce, on course for a 10.3% monthly gain.
Spot platinum climbed 3.5% to $2,352.05 an ounce while palladium was up 0.1% at $1,785.47. Both metals were headed for monthly gains.