Investing.com – Gold futures were steady on Thursday, trading close to the record high as investors awaited developments in U.S. debt talks, while renewed concerns over sovereign debt contagion in the euro zone also supported prices.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,616.35 a troy ounce during late Asian trade, easing up 0.08%.
The gold contract traded between a range of USD1,613.45, the daily low and USD1,618.65, the daily high. Gold prices rose to a record high of USD1,629.85 a troy ounce on Wednesday.
With the August 2 deadline just days away, U.S. Republican and Democratic leaders struggled to come up with a compromise that would allow them to raise the USD14.3 trillion debt ceiling.
A proposal from House Speaker John Boehner appeared to gain support among members of his own Republican party on Wednesday, but the White House has said President Barack Obama was likely to veto the plan.
Any budget plan to raise the debt limit must pass both the Republican-controlled House and the Democratic-run Senate and be signed by President Obama.
Ratings agencies Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch have said they will cut the U.S.’s top-level credit rating in the event that a failure to raise the debt ceiling results in a default.
Adding to the safe haven appeal of the precious metal, Standard & Poor’s cut Greece’s credit rating by one notch to CC, two steps above default, saying the country will partially default on its debt once the second bailout package for Greece was implemented.
“The proposed restructuring of Greek government debt would amount to a selective default under our rating methodology,” S&P said.
Meanwhile, Italian bond yields continued to edge higher ahead of a debt auction late in the day, adding to fears of contagion in the single currency bloc.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for September delivery added 0.28% to trade at USD40.37 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery rose 0.35% to trade at USD4.451 a pound.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,616.35 a troy ounce during late Asian trade, easing up 0.08%.
The gold contract traded between a range of USD1,613.45, the daily low and USD1,618.65, the daily high. Gold prices rose to a record high of USD1,629.85 a troy ounce on Wednesday.
With the August 2 deadline just days away, U.S. Republican and Democratic leaders struggled to come up with a compromise that would allow them to raise the USD14.3 trillion debt ceiling.
A proposal from House Speaker John Boehner appeared to gain support among members of his own Republican party on Wednesday, but the White House has said President Barack Obama was likely to veto the plan.
Any budget plan to raise the debt limit must pass both the Republican-controlled House and the Democratic-run Senate and be signed by President Obama.
Ratings agencies Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch have said they will cut the U.S.’s top-level credit rating in the event that a failure to raise the debt ceiling results in a default.
Adding to the safe haven appeal of the precious metal, Standard & Poor’s cut Greece’s credit rating by one notch to CC, two steps above default, saying the country will partially default on its debt once the second bailout package for Greece was implemented.
“The proposed restructuring of Greek government debt would amount to a selective default under our rating methodology,” S&P said.
Meanwhile, Italian bond yields continued to edge higher ahead of a debt auction late in the day, adding to fears of contagion in the single currency bloc.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for September delivery added 0.28% to trade at USD40.37 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery rose 0.35% to trade at USD4.451 a pound.