Gold rises, erasing losses as dollar retreats from highs
· Gold rose on Monday, erasing early losses as the dollar retreated from a two-month peak ahead of the U.S. presidential debates this week, although a stock market rebound capped gains in bullion.
· Spot gold gained 1.0% to $1,878.33 per ounce, while U.S. gold futures settled up 0.9% at $1,882.30.
· “Gold has started to recuperate losses as the dollar has eased and real rates have edged lower,” said Standard Chartered analyst Suki Cooper.
“There are plenty of risk events this week for gold to take its cue from, ranging from the first of three U.S. presidential debates to unemployment and inflation data,” she added.
· President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden will face each other in their first presidential debate on Tuesday.
· The dollar index eased 0.4% from a two-month peak hit in the last session against a basket of currencies.
· Gains in bullion were limited as the equities climbed, mainly boosted by data over the weekend showing profits at China’s industrial firms grew for the fourth straight month in August.
· “Gold has found a new key technical support level at $1,850. You are probably seeing gold investors starting to feel a little more positive about scaling back into gold,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA in New York.
“The fact that gold is down over a couple of hundred dollars from its record highs, investors see this as a good opportunity to get in.”
· Despite the gains on Monday, gold is down about 10% from a record peak of $2,072.50 hit in August. The metal posted its biggest weekly decline since March 13 on Friday.
· Silver jumped 2.9% to $23.52 per ounce, platinum climbed 4% to $880.93 and palladium rose 1.7% to $2,253.00.
· Pelosi says Democrats unveil new COVID-19 aid bill
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Monday that Democratic lawmakers unveiled a new, $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill, which she said was a compromise measure that reduces the costs of the economic aid.
“Democrats are making good on our promise to compromise with this updated bill,” she said. “We have been able to make critical additions and reduce the cost of the bill by shortening the time covered for now.”
· Pelosi eyes possible U.S. House role in calling presidential election
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi is rallying Democrats to prepare for a once-in-a-century election scenario requiring Congress to decide the outcome of the presidential race if neither Democrat Joe Biden nor President Donald Trump wins outright.
· The coronavirus has now killed more than 1 million people and upended the global economy in less than nine months
The coronavirus has killed at least 1 million people across the globe, a nightmarish milestone in the world’s fight against the virus that emerged from Wuhan, China, late last year, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
Roughly half of the world’s total Covid-19 fatalities have been reported in only four countries — the United States, Brazil, India and Mexico, according to Hopkins data.
“One million is a terrible number, and I think we need to reflect on that before we start considering a second million,” Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the World Health Organization’s health emergencies program, told reporters on Friday.
· Dr. Fauci worried about U.S. trends as positivity rate tops 25% in some Midwest states
White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that the U.S. is “not in a good place” as it continues to report more than 40,000 new cases every day.
· Pence says Americans should expect coronavirus cases to rise ‘in the days ahead’
Vice President Mike Pence said Monday that Americans should expect Covid-19 cases to rise “in the days ahead” as testing increases and some Midwest states show worrying coronavirus trends.
The rate of Covid-19 tests that come back positive is now rising in 10 states in the Midwest and West, Pence said during a press conference from the White House’s Rose Garden alongside President Donald Trump. With that development and the United States’ “historic advance in testing,” the public “should anticipate that cases will rise in the days ahead,” he added.
· The economy, Covid-19 and racial inequality are voters’ top concerns ahead of the first Trump-Biden debate
Voters in swing states want President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden to use their first debate to offer clear answers on how they plan to improve the economy, while battling Covid-19 and racial inequality.
Some of these voters, who spoke to CNBC ahead of Tuesday’s debate, said the coronavirus has affected their lives and livelihood in a variety of ways, from new health-care guidelines to layoffs. The debate on Tuesday will be the first of three between the two men.
Voters expressed hope that either Trump or Biden, who leads the race in national and several swing-state polling averages, will be able to not only mediate tense relations between the Black community and local police forces, but also work to make more systemic change for people of color.
The debate, set to occur in Cleveland, will run from 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday and will be streamed live on CNBC.com.
· Biden campaign tees up Trump tax issue on eve of first debate
Joe Biden’s campaign seized on a fresh line of attack on the eve of the Democratic presidential nominee’s first debate with President Donald Trump, accusing the Republican incumbent of gaming the system to avoid paying his fair share of taxes.
· BOE likely to take on negative rates only in early 2021: Deutsche Bank
· Threat to evacuate U.S. diplomats from Iraq raises fear of war
Washington has made preparations to withdraw diplomats from Iraq after warning Baghdad it could shut its embassy, two Iraqi officials and two Western diplomats said, a step Iraqis fear could turn their country into a battle zone.
Reference: CNBC, Reuters
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