Daily Market Report 8/20/14

GOLD

Gold is holding steady as the market awaits the release of the minutes from the latest FOMC meeting. The burning question from the FOMC report is, "When will the Fed implement its first interest rate rise in many years?" The market is also looking to Friday’s upcoming speeches by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen and ECB President Mario Draghi at the Economic Symposium conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming to yield important clues as to the direction of monetary policies. In recent years the Economic Symposium has taken on heightened importance as financial markets look for speakers to shed light on their outlook for the economy.

At 11am PST Gold is trading at $1,294.19, down $1.71 on average volume.

SILVER

Silver is up a bit today as global market concerns over a range of indicators fuel a renewed interest in precious metals as safe-haven investments. Several factors may combine to push Silver prices higher as we head into the Fall months, including a widening Gold/Silver ratio, demand on a course to exceed supply, and increasing geopolitical and economic risk.

At 11am PST Silver is trading at $19.54, up $0.08 on average volume.