Weaker As Dollar & Yields Push Higher Ahead Of Jackson Hole

Gold is 0.4% higher in today’s Asia-Pac session, after closing 1.1% lower at $2484.75 on Thursday.

• Bullion reflected dollar strength, which gained the most in over a month due to concerns traders had overplayed prospects for aggressive easing before the end of the year. A stronger greenback is usually a negative for gold as it is priced in the US currency.
• Additionally, US Treasury yields finished higher following steady data and cautious comments from Fed’s Schmid ahead of the Jackson Hole Symposium.
• The Fed could be approaching the time to reduce interest rates, but it must make sure inflation is coming down sustainably to its 2% target, Kansas City Fed President Jeffrey Schmid said Thursday. “We’ve got some data sets to come in before September, I want to be thoughtful about it,” Schmid told CNBC in an interview.
• US initial jobless claims were in line at 232k, with the four-week moving average looking like a plateau rather than suggesting any further deterioration in the labour market.
• According to MNI’s technicals team, gold remains in a bull-mode condition and this week’s fresh cycle high reinforces current conditions. The recent breach of resistance at $2483.7, the Jul 17 high, confirmed a resumption of the primary uptrend. Note that moving average studies remain in a bull-mode set-up and this continues to highlight a dominant uptrend.