Federal Reserve

You wouldn’t believe it by looking in the financial news but the price of gold has had a stellar run over the last few years . . . .

Gold futures settled modestly higher Wednesday, helped by a slightly weaker dollar index even as stocks reclaimed a portion of the sharp declines that marked the start to the week . . . .

Some analysts worry that higher US interest rates are bearish for gold. Because gold has no yield, the higher rates climb, the greater the relative appeal of other assets. But the evidence doesn’t bear this out, says Russ Mould of investment platform AJ Bell in The Daily Telegraph . . . .

Sterling and yen also make gains against dollar as US markets close for holiday . . . .

The yellow metal ended the year up a little more than 13% – its best year since 2010 – while gold stocks, as measured by the NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index, gained more than 11% . . . .

After another disappointing trading session, one bank sees gold ending the week on a positive note, with prices possibly moving up to $1,300 an ounce if the Federal Reserve hints at weak inflation on Wednesday . . . .

Germany’s central bank completed its plan to repatriate the country’s gold reserves from New York and Paris, three years ahead of schedule . . . .

Gold prices are set to jump to a four-year high of $1,400 an ounce by the end of the year over mounting tensions between North Korea and the US, and surging demand in the world’s biggest consumers, according to the head of precious metals at a Russian investment bank . . . .

Gold held steady today in Asian and European trading and was flat for the week, consolidating near the $1,270 per ounce level and the 2.5% gain seen in July. It remains close to a seven-week high hit this week, as the dollar remains weak and vulnerable near multi-month lows after five consecutive months of declines . . . .

In an timely piece, Rickards points out how the Federal Reserve is behind the curve, has “theories that bear no relation to reality” and has “blundered by raising rates.” This is happening at a time when the U.S. economy and stock markets are very vulnerable . . . .