Gold keeps falling following Fed minutes
Gold futures, already hovering at their lowest levels since July, continued falling during Thursday’s Asian session following the release of minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s latest meeting released during Wednesday’s U.S. session.
Gold was following in advance of the FOMC minutes and plummeted after the minutes showed the Fed may start easing or outright halt its bond-buying activities before originally planned. While there is no guarantee that will happen in the near-term, the mere hint the Fed is preparing to wind its easing program sent traders scurrying out of riskier assets.
Gold was punished in the flight to safety because that flight meant landing with the U.S. dollar. Monetary stimulus tools tend to weaken the dollar, which trades inversely from gold. Mixed data points released in the U.S. Wednesday also weighed on gold.
In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department said its producer price index for January rose 0.2% after falling 0.3% in December. For the 12 months ending in January, wholesale prices were up 1.4% after a 1.3% increase in December.
The Commerce Department said housing starts fell 8.5% in January after jumping 15.7% in December. New home construction declined to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 890,000 last month from 973,000 in December.
Importantly, gold futures have made what is known as a "death cross," the technical scenario under which a security’s 50-day moving average falls below its 200-day line. As its name implies, the death cross is a bearish pattern and could lead to increased selling pressure on bullion.
Gold was following in advance of the FOMC minutes and plummeted after the minutes showed the Fed may start easing or outright halt its bond-buying activities before originally planned. While there is no guarantee that will happen in the near-term, the mere hint the Fed is preparing to wind its easing program sent traders scurrying out of riskier assets.
Gold was punished in the flight to safety because that flight meant landing with the U.S. dollar. Monetary stimulus tools tend to weaken the dollar, which trades inversely from gold. Mixed data points released in the U.S. Wednesday also weighed on gold.
In U.S. economic news, the Labor Department said its producer price index for January rose 0.2% after falling 0.3% in December. For the 12 months ending in January, wholesale prices were up 1.4% after a 1.3% increase in December.
The Commerce Department said housing starts fell 8.5% in January after jumping 15.7% in December. New home construction declined to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 890,000 last month from 973,000 in December.
Importantly, gold futures have made what is known as a "death cross," the technical scenario under which a security’s 50-day moving average falls below its 200-day line. As its name implies, the death cross is a bearish pattern and could lead to increased selling pressure on bullion.
Oil falls on Fed headlines, hedge fund rumors
Oil futures extended losses seen in U.S. trade Wednesday during Thursday’s Asian session as traders digested a couple of points of market speculation, neither of which is seen as healthy for oil’s near-term outlook.
Natural Gas edges up amid forecasts for cooler temps, eyes supplies
Natural gas futures extended Tuesday's gains into Wednesday, as weather forecasting services continued to issue calls for colder-than-normal temperatures to return for much of the nation.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in March traded at USD3.280 per million British thermal units, up 0.26%.
Weather forecasting services originally calling for seasonable temperatures began to forecast cooler-than-normal thermometer readings for much of the U.S., which sparked a rally in natural gas markets on Tuesday, with prices shooting up 3.8%.
Industry weather group MDA Federal said it expected a "chilly, unsettled pattern" with below-normal temperatures settling in for much of the nation in its one to five-day outlook
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in March traded at USD3.280 per million British thermal units, up 0.26%.
Weather forecasting services originally calling for seasonable temperatures began to forecast cooler-than-normal thermometer readings for much of the U.S., which sparked a rally in natural gas markets on Tuesday, with prices shooting up 3.8%.
Industry weather group MDA Federal said it expected a "chilly, unsettled pattern" with below-normal temperatures settling in for much of the nation in its one to five-day outlook
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