Gold slumps to 9-month trough as yields, dollar rally continues
· Gold prices slid more than 1% on Monday to a nine-month low, as the dollar and U.S. Treasury yields kept rising, prompting investors to dump the non-yielding metal.
· Spot gold fell 1.1% to $1,681.41 per ounce by 1:47 p.m. EST (1847 GMT), after hitting its lowest since June 5 at $1,676.10. U.S. gold futures settled 1.2% down at $1,678.
· The dollar climbed to a three-month peak, while the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield held near a more than one-year high, raising the opportunity cost of holding the non-interest bearing metal.
· Reflective of sentiment, SPDR Gold Trust holdings, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, fell to a 10-month low on Friday.
· “We have an economy that is recovering and inflation is materializing; that ultimately means yields have room to move higher,” said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategies at TD Securities, adding that gold could fall towards $1,660 from the fallout.
Melek also noted that an unexpected jump in U.S. nonfarm payrolls and a strong stock market were more a reflection of an improving economy and less of “critically high” inflation.
· Gold is seen as a hedge against inflation.
· U.S. Congressional approval of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan failed to keep the metal afloat.
· Analysts also said U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s failure to address the recent surge in U.S. yields last week further pressured gold.
· Though markets have not got much pushback from the Fed on yields, few doubt the Fed is not going to act eventually and with rate hikes unlikely this year, that should support gold, said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA.
But in the near-term gold could trade between $1,650 and $1,700, with a move below $1,650 likely to invite some selling pressure, he added.
· Silver fell 0.2% to $25.14 an ounce.
· Palladium fell 1% to $2,314.83.
· Platinum rose 1.2% to $1,143.42.
· House prepares to pass $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill, and Biden is expected to sign it this week
· U.S. can deliver COVID-19 aid checks quickly, but child tax credit is hurdle
· CORONAVIRUS UPDATES:
COVID-19 infections are still rising in 65 countries.
Global Cases: 117.74M (+285,135)
Global Deaths: 2.6M (+6,245)
No.1
U.S. Cases: 29.74M (+43,201)
U.S. Deaths: 538,585 (+744)
The United States reported a 12% decline in new cases of COVID-19 last week, while vaccinations accelerated to a record 2.2 million shots per day, according to a Reuters analysis of state, county and CDC data.
New infections have dropped for eight weeks in a row, averaging 60,000 new cases per day for the week ended March 7. Deaths linked to COVID-19 fell 18% last week to 11,800, the lowest since late November and averaging 1,686 per day.
Despite the positive trends, health officials have warned that the country could see a resurgence in cases as more infectious variants of the virus have been found in nearly every state.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, has urged the nation to keep most pandemic restrictions in place until new cases fall to under 10,000 per day.
Thirteen out of 50 states reported more new infections last week compared with the previous seven days, down from 29 states in the prior week, according to the Reuters analysis. New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island had the highest rates of new infections per 100,000 residents.
No.2-6:
India Cases: 11.24M
Brazil Cases: 11.05M
Russia Cases: 4.33M
U.K. Cases: 4.22M
France Cases: 3.90M
No.38
Japan Cases: 439,992 (+1,036)
No.86
China Cases: 89,994 (+19)
No.116
Thailand Cases: 26,441 (+71)
Thailand Deaths: 85
· South Korea Investigating Deaths Of Two Long Term Care Patients Who Received AstraZeneca Vaccine
Health authorities in South Korea are investigating the deaths of two individuals in long-term care facilities both of whom died within days after receiving AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine, a week after South Korea rolled out its vaccination program.
· South Korea finds no link found between deaths and coronavirus vaccine
Health officials had been investigating the deaths of eight people with underlying conditions who had adverse reactions after receiving AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, but said they found no evidence that the shots played a role.
· Covid-19 Vaccination:
So far 118 countries have begun vaccinating people for the coronavirus and have administered at least 305,129,000 doses of the vaccine.
· Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine neutralizes Brazil variant in lab study
· Science says it's safe, but some in France don't trust AstraZeneca vaccine
· CDC study finds about 78% of people hospitalized for Covid were overweight or obese
· In Japan, vending machines help ease access to COVID-19 tests
· UK shopper numbers fall for first time in seven weeks
The number of people heading out to shops across Britain fell by 0.7% in the week to March 6 versus the previous week, a first decline in seven weeks, market researcher Springboard said on Monday.
· U.S. embassy condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi oil heartland
The United States said on Monday it is committed to defending Saudi Arabia following drone and missile strikes by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement, including on a Saudi facility vital to oil exports.
· U.S. says Yemen's Houthis have to stop attacking and start negotiating
· Pentagon uncertain of U.S. troop withdrawal in Afghanistan as deadline looms
· Myanmar forces trap protesters as UN and U.S. urge restraint
· Lebanon army chief berates politicians after president calls to clear protests
Reference: CNBC, Reuters, Forbes, Worldometers
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