Gold was up on Monday morning in Asia’s precious metals. Investors turned to the safe-haven metal as the dollar strengthened. Negotiations over the latest U.S. stimulus measures stalled.
Gold futures were up 0.37% at $1933.35, hitting its highest level since Sep. 21. It was at $1,932.96 earlier in the session while the dollar was up on Monday.
President Donald Trump proposed on Friday a $1.8 trillion package, during talks with House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi. But some of his fellow Republicans are reluctant to add to the growing U.S. debt pile. This is despite the proposal being closer to the Democrats’ preferred price tag of $2.2. trillion.
The resistance to a broader package mounted on Sunday. President Trump’s administration called on Congress to pass a stripped-down COVID-19 relief bill. The relief bill is to be funded by an expired small business loan program.
Moreover, Trump also said on Sunday he had fully recovered from COVID-19. His physician Sean Conley stated that he is no longer an infection risk.
The European Council
The European Council is set to meet from October 15 to 16. Investors will be looking to see whether the European Union and the U.K. can reach a Brexit deal. That is ahead of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s self-imposed Oct.15 deadline.
On Saturday Johnson told French President Emmanuel Macron that Britain will explore every avenue for a trade deal. It was with a warning that progress to bridge significant gaps needs to be made in the coming days.
Investors increased their bullish positions in COMEX gold. Moreover, cut them in silver contracts in the week to Oct. 6. This was according to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on Friday.
In India, Jewelers saw physical gold sold at a premium during the previous week. This was for the first time since mid-August, ahead of key festivals in the country. This could entice customers back into jewelry stores.
Meanwhile, in energy commodities, oil prices dropped for a second straight session on Monday. U.S. producers began restoring output after Hurricane Delta weakened. Moreover, a strike that had affected production in Norway came to an end.
Brent crude for December fell 32 cents, or 0.8%, to $42.53 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate for November was at $40.30 a barrel, down 30 cents, or 0.7%.
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