Slightly Higher In Asia

Gold trades ~$5/oz firmer, printing $2,055.7/oz at typing. The precious metal has backed away from fresh cycle highs made on Tuesday ($2,070.44/oz), although a continued downtick in broader U.S. real yields provides continued support. The real yield dynamic has ultimately pushed bullion higher in recent weeks, with inflationary spillovers from the Russia-Ukraine conflict remaining front and centre.

• To recap, gold closed ~$50/oz firmer on Tuesday, with the move higher facilitated by the U.S. and the UK announcing embargoes on Russian crude imports, heightening concern re: inflationary spillovers. Elsewhere, Europe and Japan continue to debate their own energy sanctions on Russia (although Germany continues to lead opposition against any such measures, given the European reliance on Russian energy flows).
• From a technical perspective, price action over the previous day has seen the precious metal again break several levels of resistance, confirming the bullish underlying trend. Initial resistance is now located at $2,075.47/oz (Aug ’20 all-time high and major resistance), while support sits some distance away at $1,961.2 (Mar 7 low).