The global metals market has recently ushered in another round of price increases. During Monday's Asian trading session, international spot gold continued last week's rally, once touching $2,450 per ounce, hitting a new intraday record high. In addition, the prices of silver, platinum and copper have also risen, what has contributed to this rally?
On Monday (May 20), precious and industrial metals including gold, silver, platinum and copper all rose.
Gold extended last week's rally, with spot gold reaching $2,450 an ounce during Monday's Asian trading session, surpassing the intraday high set in April. As of around 4:30 p.m. Beijing time on May 20, spot gold was hovering at $2,440 an ounce. Since the 15th, gold has begun to have a round of gains. At that time, the latest inflation data in the United States was released, the consumer price index for April, which showed a larger-than-expected decline. In addition, the slowdown in the US producer price index and retail sales data released last week has revived hopes that the Fed will cut interest rates twice this year.
In recent trading days, the market has been ramping up bets that the Fed could start a rate cut cycle as early as September. As a result, the US dollar weakened, while gold, a non-interest-bearing asset denominated in US dollars, was boosted.
In addition, the tragic death of the Iranian president in a helicopter accident has also touched the hearts of the market. Uncertainty over geopolitical risks has also boosted gold's safe-haven attributes. In addition to the traditional trading logic of the US dollar and gold, some analysts pointed out that gold is also sought after by retail demand from Asia.
Spot gold has risen more than 18% so far this year. In addition, as of around 4:30 p.m. Beijing time on May 20, spot silver rose to about $31.75 per ounce, an 11-year high. Platinum rose above $1,090 an ounce, its highest since April 23, 2023.
Also worth paying attention to is copper, a base metal that reflects the broader state of the economy. Copper futures traded on the London Metal Exchange briefly breached the $1,100 per tonne mark on Monday. According to the analysis, the decarbonization and electrification trends caused by the global energy transition in recent years will continue to increase the demand for copper, and the lack of global copper mining and related investment in the past decade will lead to a shortage of supply, which will continue to push up copper prices.
Source: Hubei Daily Comprehensive CCTV Finance and Economics, CCTV News Client