Gold turns positive from 2-mth low on dovish Fed, dollar pull back
· Gold prices reversed course and turned positive on Thursday, after touching a two-month low, as the dollar retreated slightly and as Federal Reserve officials reaffirmed to keeping monetary policy loose.
· Spot gold rose 0.6% to $1,874.93 per ounce as of 1:46 p.m. EDT (1746 GMT). U.S. gold futures for December settled up 0.5% at 1,876.9.
· “The Fed continues to tell us that they will do whatever is required to make sure things don’t happen badly, and that certainly is a catalyst to think that there will be more accommodation, which is accretive for gold,” said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategies at TD Securities.
· Fed officials had reaffirmed their low interest rate policy until the labour market recovers or inflation rises to 2%.
· The dollar was down 0.1% against key rivals having touched a two-month high earlier in the session.
· Bullion, however, had fallen to its lowest level since July 22 earlier.
· Data showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly increased last week.
· Gold prices have declined about 10% since hitting a record peak in August as expectations of further stimulus from the government waned with the U.S. Congress locked in a stalemate.
· Elsewhere, silver rose 1.8% to $23.28 per ounce, having touched its lowest since July 22 earlier.
· Platinum rose 1% to $847, having hit a more-than two-month low earlier. Palladium gained 0.4% to $2,229.83, having touched a near-one-month low earlier.
· U.S. House Democrats crafting new $2.2 trillion COVID-19 relief package
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are working on a $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package that could be voted on next week, a key lawmaker said on Thursday, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reiterated that she is ready to negotiate with the White House.
· Debate on U.S. funding bill will not finish until next week after Democrats delay Senate process
The U.S. Senate voted on Thursday to take up a stopgap funding bill to keep the federal government operating through Dec. 11, paving the way for final passage that would avoid a government shutdown next week.
But work on the measure appeared unlikely to finish before the deadline next Wednesday, after Democrats used procedural rules to extend the debate as part of their protests over Republicans’ rushing to fill a Supreme Court vacancy left by the death of liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg last week.
· Mnuchin, Powell say some $380 billion in unused aid could help U.S. economy
As much as $380 billion from the U.S. Congress’ last big coronavirus aid package is unused and could help households and businesses if lawmakers approve, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Thursday.
That is far short of the $500 billion to $1 trillion many economists had expected in new fiscal stimulus for the flagging recovery. But rising tensions between Republicans and Democrats have made a new relief package ahead of the Nov. 3 election look increasingly unlikely.
· Fed's Powell says Main Street may use up to $30 billion by year end
The Federal Reserve’s Main Street Lending facility may lend as much as $30 billion by the end of the year, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in testimony before the Senate Banking Committee.
“The total loans might be, I don’t know, you know, $10, $20, $30 billion by the end of the year, that’s with leverage” he said in the last of three hearings in which he testified before Congress this week.
· Fed's Evans says U.S. taking unnecessary risks with lack of more fiscal aid
The United States should extend more help to the millions of Americans who have lost work in the coronavirus crisis, Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans said Thursday in the latest blunt warning from a top Fed official on the likely fallout of the impasse in Congress over further pandemic relief.
· Fed's Williams says structural inequality stifles economic growth
The coronavirus crisis has been especially painful for communities of color, and a full economic recovery will require investment in health, education, infrastructure and training, New York Federal Reserve President John Williams said on Thursday.
“Structural inequality stifles growth, but there is no single silver bullet that can solve the problems laid bare by the pandemic,” Williams said in remarks prepared for a virtual forum on economic inequality.
· Fed's Barkin sees low risk of inflation escalating in near future
Inflation expectations are stable and well-anchored and the risk of inflation escalating in the near future is low, Richmond Federal Reserve Bank President Tom Barkin said on Thursday.
The Fed’s new monetary policy framework may help to modestly boost inflation expectations, Barkin said in remarks prepared for a virtual forum.
· Fed's Bullard: Not reasonable to make second virus wave a baseline outlook for U.S. economy
It is unreasonable to expect a second wave of coronavirus infections to push the U.S. recovery off track given the steady progress in tamping down deaths from the pandemic, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said on Thursday.
· Weekly jobless claims rise unexpectedly as stimulus boost fades
The number of first-time filers for unemployment benefits were slightly higher than expected last week as the labor market continues its sluggish recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that initial jobless claims for the week ending Sept. 19 came in at 870,000, adjusted for seasonal fluctuations. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected first-time claims at 850,000, down slightly from the previous week’s 860,000.
· U.S. new home sales vault to near 14-year high in August
Sales of new U.S. single-family homes increased to their highest level in nearly 14 years in August, suggesting the housing market continued to gain momentum even as the economy’s recovery from the COVID-19 recession appears to be slowing.
The Commerce Department said on Thursday new home sales rose 4.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.011 million units last month, the highest level since September 2006. New home sales are counted at the signing of a contract, making them a leading housing market indicator.
· CORONAVIRUS UPDATES:
Global cases: More than 32.39 million
Global deaths: At least 987,066
U.S. cases: More than 7.18 million
India cases: More than 5.81 million
Brazil cases: More than 4.65 million
· UK hits highest daily COVID-19 cases at 6,634, partly due to more tests
· Spain tops 700,000 coronavirus cases, Madrid surge in spotlight
Spain’s cumulative tally of confirmed coronavirus infections passed 700,000 on Thursday and authorities warned of tougher times ahead in the densely-populated virus hotspot region of Madrid, which accounts for over a third of hospital admissions.
· Myanmar reports 1,000 coronavirus cases in one day in record rise
The Southeast Asian nation reported 1,052 infections, making a total of 8,344 cases, more than double the number in neighbouring Thailand, which has a bigger population.
· Singapore is committed to containing coronavirus pandemic even as daily cases fall, politician says
· Top U.S. Republicans promise peaceful transition after Trump sows doubts
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other top Republicans on Thursday repudiated President Donald Trump’s refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power, assuring American voters the lawmakers would accept the outcome of November’s election.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters, Worldometers
Thai
Eng