(MENAFN- Baystreet.ca) Gold Prepares for Worst Week in 5 Months
Gold was set on Friday for its worst week in five months, as bullion prices were hammered by increasing bets that the U.S. Federal Reserve would accelerate the pace of stimulus tapering and raise interest rates sooner to curb rising inflation.
Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,792.62 U.S. per ounce overnight. U.S. gold futures advanced 0.5% to $1,793.90.
The metal has declined more than 2.8% this week, heading for its worst week since June 18.
The Fed will likely double the pace of tapering its monthly bond purchases from January to $30 billion, and wind down its pandemic-era bond buying scheme by mid-March, Goldman Sachs strategists said in a daily note on Thursday.
Reduced stimulus and interest rate hikes tend to push government bond yields up, raising the opportunity cost of gold, which pays no interest.
China's net gold imports via Hong Kong jumped to the highest since June 2018 in October, as buyers in the top consumer stocked up on the metal as a cushion against rising inflation.
Spot silver fell 0.1% to $23.55 U.S.per ounce. Platinum dropped 0.6% to $989.77 U.S., while palladium rose 0.4% to $1,866.34 U.S.
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