Gold Poised for Third Weekly Advance on Recovery Headwinds

(Bloomberg) -- Gold headed for a third weekly advance as fears that coronavirus variants may endanger the economic recovery spurred investor demand for havens.

Bullion is winning back investors after a bleak June, helped by a sharp decline in Treasury yields which burnish the appeal of the non-interest bearing metal. Renewed virus fears around the world have taken the edge off the so-called reflation trade, causing global stocks to slump on Thursday. Bullion held gains even though U.S. bond yields and equities rebounded Friday.

The risks to the recovery were underscored this week by Federal Reserve minutes that highlighted continued uncertainties. China’s central bank cut the amount of cash most banks must hold in reserve, a move that went further than many economists expected and suggested growing concerns about the economy’s recovery.

“Gold’s credentials as a hedge against unforeseen developments has, in our opinion, strengthened during the past month,” Ole Hansen, an analyst at Saxo Bank said in a note. “We believe gold has major upside potentials should the global recovery not play out as anticipated or inflation begins to move above expectations.”

Seasonality will likely to see gold rise in the third quarter, according to Paul Wong, market strategist at Sprott Asset Management. In the past 20 years, the third quarter was the best seasonal period for gold and the cmpanies that mine it, he said in a note.

Gold was up 0.5% at $1,811.81 an ounce by 2:53 p.m. in New York, and is set to gain 1.4% this week. Futures for August delivery on the Comex rose 0.6% to settle at $1,810.60. Spot silver, platinum, and palladium also gained on Friday. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index weakened 0.3%.

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