· Gold prices held steady on Wednesday as investors were cautious ahead of U.S. jobs data due later this week, but prices were set to post their worst month since November 2016 on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s shift to a hawkish policy stance.
· Spot gold was steady at $1,761.80 per ounce, as of 1231 GMT. U.S. gold futures fell 0.1% to $1,761.80.
· For the month, prices were down 7.6%. For the quarter, gold had risen 3.2%.
· Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller on Tuesday said he is “very optimistic” about the economy, and while he declined to say when he thinks the Fed should start raising interest rates, he said it could be next year.
· U.S. consumer confidence jumped to its highest level in nearly 1-1/2 years in June as growing labor market optimism amid a reopening economy offset concerns about higher inflation.
· The U.S. Labor Department’s nonfarm payrolls data on Friday is expected to show a gain of 690,000 jobs this month, compared with 559,000 in May, according to a Reuters poll.
· Gold is seen as a hedge against inflation, although a Fed rate hike will increase the opportunity cost of holding bullion and dull its appeal.
· "Gold has consolidated near the lows since the Fed's strategy shift on monetary policy and it is now awaiting U.S. economic data for further guidance," said DailyFX currency strategist Ilya Spivak.
· Silver rose 0.3% to $25.81 per ounce. Palladium gained 0.4% at $2,686.81 and was headed for a fourth straight quarterly gain.
· Platinum rose 0.2% to $1,068.96, and was set to post its worst quarter and month since March last year.
· Warren Buffett says the pandemic has had an ‘extremely uneven’ impact and is not yet over
Legendary investor Warren Buffett said the economic consequences of the pandemic are falling disproportionately on small businesses and the unpredictability of Covid-19 is far from over.
“The economic impact has been this extremely uneven thing where... many hundreds of thousands or millions of small businesses have been hurt in a terrible way, but most of the big companies have overwhelmingly have done fine,” the Berkshire Hathaway CEO said during an interview with Becky Quick on CNBC’s special “Buffett & Munger: A Wealth of Wisdom,” which aired on Tuesday.
· Euro zone sentiment hits 21-year-high with further reopening
Euro zone economic sentiment surged in June to a 21-year-high as an accelerated pace of COVID-19 vaccinations led to further reopening and an improved mood across all sectors of the economy, notably in retail and services.
The European Commission’s monthly sentiment survey for the 19 countries sharing the euro on Tuesday showed optimism rising to 117.9 points in June from 114.5 in May, beating the consensus estimate in a Reuters poll of 116.5.
· Lockdown measures extended in Australia amid COVID-19 outbreak
Australian officials extended lockdown and social distancing measures to more of the country on Wednesday, with four major cities already under a hard lockdown in a race to contain an outbreak of the highly contagious Delta coronavirus variant.
· Japan's consumer confidence improves in June - government
Japan’s consumer confidence rose in June, the government said on Wednesday, after coronavirus state-of-emergency curbs in Tokyo and other areas were eased earlier this month.
A Cabinet Office survey showed the sentiment index for general households, which includes views on incomes and jobs, was at 37.4 in June, compared with 34.1 in May.
· North Korea's Kim chides officials for unspecified pandemic lapse
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un chastised top ruling party officials for failures in anti-epidemic work that led to an unspecified "great crisis" and put the safety of the country and people at risk, state media reported on Wednesday.
· Singapore central bank chief says 2021 economic growth could exceed forecast
Singapore’s economic growth could exceed the upper end of the official 4% to 6% forecast range this year, barring a setback to the global economy, central bank chief Ravi Menon reiterated on Wednesday.
· Singapore Travelers to Guangdong Province in China will no longer have to serve a stay-at-home notice if their COVID-19 PCR test on arrival is negative.
· G20 foreign, development ministers call for action to ensure adequate nutrition for all
Ministers of foreign affairs and development from the world's 20 biggest economies on Tuesday called on the entire international community to build inclusive and resilient food chains, to ensure adequate nutrition for all, in line with the goal of "Zero Hunger" set for 2030.
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