Gold gains as oil slumps after Trump holds off on Iran attack

FUNDAMENTALS

Spot gold was up 0.7% at $4,067.06 per ounce, as of 0023 GMT. U.S. gold futures rose 0.9% to $4,065.60.

Trump said ‌late on Saturday ⁠on ⁠his Truth Social platform that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked for time to complete a deal that would lead to “the Immediate, Complete and Total” reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and “an end to Iran’s nuclear threat”.

Oil prices fell more than $5 a barrel at Monday’s open. [O/R]

Gold has come under pressure since the start of the U.S.-Iran conflict, as a war-driven ⁠rise in ‌inflation could prompt central banks to raise interest rates. Although bullion is traditionally viewed as a hedge against inflation, its appeal tends ⁠to diminish in a high-interest-rate environment because it does not yield interest.

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Three Federal Reserve officials who dissented at last week’s policy meeting in favour of an interest rate hike expressed concern on Friday that without an immediate increase in short-term borrowing costs, inflation will stay stuck above the Fed’s 2% target, where it has been for more than five years.

Market participants will also focus on a slew ‌of U.S. jobs reports due this week, including job openings data, the ADP employment report, weekly jobless claims and the nonfarm payrolls report.

Spot silver gained 0.7% ⁠to $58.02 per ounce, platinum climbed 0.7% to $1,653.78, and palladium firmed 1.5% to $1,293.00.

Russia’s Norilsk Nickel, the world’s largest palladium producer, reported on Friday that its revenue and net profit in the first six months had sharply increased.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

0030 Japan S&P Global Mfg PMI Final SA Jul

0145 China RatingDog Manufacturing PMI Final Jul

0750 France S&P Manufacturing PMI Jul

0755 Germany S&P Manufacturing PMI Jul

0800 EU S&P MFG Final PMI Jul

0830 UK S&P GLOBAL MANUFACTURING PMI Jul

1345 US S&P Global Mfg PMI Final Jul

1400 US ISM Manufacturing PMI Jul