Today's Gold and Silver News: 05-01-2023

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Silver Price News: Silver Holds Above $24 Awaiting Fresh Catalyst

Silver is holding firm above $24 an ounce with the price going through a period of largely sideways trading since the middle of December as investors appraise the true value of the metal after a volatile 2022. 

After slumping from April through to September, silver’s impressive recovery in the final quarter of the year resulted in the metal achieving a small annual increase and setting itself up for further gains in 2023. 

The outlook remains promising for silver with the metal in big demand from industry, with silver a key component within some of the most burgeoning sectors of our time, the energy transition and the tech revolution. Add in impressive demand from investment, coin and bar and jewellery sectors and silver were able to enjoy a very contented holiday break with much to look forward to in the new year. Read More

Gold Price News: Gold at Six-Month High Despite Prospect of More Rate Hikes

Gold has started 2023 on the front foot with today’s gains pushing the price to its highest level in more than six months. 

Today brings the release of the minutes from last month’s Federal Open Market Committee which should shed more light on where the US central bank sees interest rates needing to go to curb persistently high inflation. Although these minutes reflect back on how the market was a few weeks ago, it will be interesting to note gold’s reaction as the precious metal has been able to enjoy a run of gains despite the Fed signalling the likelihood of interest rates needing to climb to 5% this year. 

A weakening of the US Dollar allied to a softening in the outlook of how hawkish the Fed would need to be as well as the collapse of crypto exchange FTX all boosted gold and have led to an impressive surge in the price from early November onwards. With the short-term boost from investors switching out of crypto assets and into gold now largely complete, the focus switches on how correct the dovish reappraisal of the Fed’s likely trajectory proves. Read More

Gold rallies amid a nervous marketplace

Gold prices are higher and hit another six-month high Wednesday. Safe-haven demand is featured so far this first trading week of 2023, amid shaky global stock markets and global economic growth worries. Bullish technical postures for gold and silver are also prompting more chart-based buying interest. February gold was last up $11.00 at $1,858.00 and March silver was down $0.186 at $24.03.

Gold and silver prices did back well down from their daily highs ahead of the early-afternoon release of the minutes from the last Open Market Committee meeting of the Federal Reserve (FOMC). Metals traders were wondering if the minutes might produce a hawkish surprise.

The rallies in the gold and silver markets this week also come amid worries about rising Covid infections in China continuing to crimp the world’s second-largest economy.

Technically, February gold futures prices hit a six-month high again today. Bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. A two-month-old uptrend is in place on the daily bar chart. Bulls’ next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at $1,900.00. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at $1,782.00. First resistance is seen at today’s high of $1,871.30 and then at $1,900.00. First support is seen at $1,850.00 and then at today’s low of $1,842.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 8.0.

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March silver futures prices hit an eight-month high Tuesday. The silver bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage. Prices are in a four-month-old uptrend on the daily bar chart. Silver bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at $25.00. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $22.735. First resistance is seen at this week’s high of $24.775 and then at $25.00. Next support is seen at $24.00 and then at last week’s low of $23.645. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 7.5. Read More

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Gold continues 2023 rally amidst minutes revealing Fed remains hawkish

This afternoon the Federal Reserve released the minutes from last month’s FOMC meeting. Unanimously Fed officials agreed that the central bank should slow the pace of its aggressive rate hikes. This would allow them to continue to ratchet up the cost of credit to curb inflation. They continue to be worried that market participants have an inaccurate perception of hoping for rate cuts this year. However, they left the door open to tightening even more aggressively if inflation rises.

"Most participants emphasized the need to retain flexibility and optionality when moving policy to a more restrictive stance."

Most importantly they continued their stern doctrine to raise interest rates to just over 5% by the end of this year. "No participants anticipated that it would be appropriate to begin reducing the federal funds rate target in 2023,"

Image Source: Kitco News

Gold prices maintained the morning gains following the release of last month’s FOMC meeting minutes at 2:00 PM EST. Gold futures opened today at $1845.20 and traded to an intraday high of $1871.30. As of 2:45 PM EST, the most active February 2023 contract is fixed at $1857.40 after factoring in today’s price gain of $11.60. Read More

Michael Burry: 'U.S. in recession by any definition,' inflation to see 'another spike' as Fed cuts rates

 The U.S. is already in a recession "by any definition," and even though inflation might have peaked, for now, there will be another spike as the Federal Reserve starts to cut rates again, warned "The Big Short" investor Michael Burry.

Scion Asset Management founder's message comes as markets are trying to price in recession odds for the new year.

"The US [is] in recession by any definition," Burry tweeted over the weekend.

But an economic slowdown does not guarantee that the inflation problem that the Fed has been busy battling for all of 2022 is over, he added.

"Inflation peaked. But it is not the last peak of this cycle. We are likely to see CPI lower, possibly negative in 2H 2023," Burry said. "Fed will cut and government will stimulate. And we will have another inflation spike." Read More

Gold price holds above $1,850 as Fed minutes reveal worry about 'misperception' and 'unwarranted' easing

The gold market was able to hold some of its daily gains following the release of the Federal Reserve's December meeting minutes, with price trading above the $1,850 an ounce level.

At the December meeting, Fed officials confirmed their commitment to bringing down inflation and warned against "unwarranted" loosening of financial conditions.

The meeting minutes also revealed that officials were worried about any "misperception" in financial markets around their actions.

"Participants noted that, because monetary policy worked importantly through financial markets, an unwarranted easing in financial conditions, especially if driven by a misperception by the public of the committee's reaction function, would complicate the committee's effort to restore price stability," stated the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee's December 13-14 meeting.

During the last meeting of the year, the Fed slowed to a 50 basis point increase but remained very firm in its goal to bring inflation down to 2%. Fed Chair Jerome Powell also warned the markets that rates are not at a restrictive-enough level and will have to stay higher for longer.

In the minutes, officials noted that a slower pace of rate hikes does not mean an easing of financial conditions. Read More

Jim Rogers reveals the 'biggest risk' in 2023, as well as 'cheapest assets'

Central banking is the "biggest risk" in 2023 according to Jim Rogers, a renowned investor whose fund outperformed the markets by 4,200 percent in the 1970s, despite the stagflation which characterized that decade.

"We have a lot of central banks [printing money]," he explained. "Whenever you have a lot of money-printing, it distorts markets, it distorts inflation, it distorts interest rates, and [it causes] gigantic debt."

Rogers, who is Co-Founder of the Quantum Fund and Chairman of Rogers Holdings, said he likes to purchase assets at a discount, and claimed that "commodities" constitute "the cheapest asset class."

"Silver is down 70 percent from its all-time high, sugar is down 70 percent," he said. "People haven't been rushing out and buying commodities in recent years."

Rogers spoke with David Lin, Anchor and Producer at Kitco News. Read More

Disclaimer: These articles are provided for informational purposes only. They are not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other advice.