Investing.com - Gold futures crept higher in the early part of Thursday’s Asian session after posting solid, fiscal cliff-related gains during Wednesday’s U.S. session.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for February delivery rose 0.01% to USD1,688.85 per troy ounce in Asian trading Thursday. The yellow metal traded as high as USD1,690.45 and as low as USD1,685.95 per ounce. Gold futures were likely to test support USD1,652.22 a troy ounce, the low of Dec. 26, and resistance at USD1,704.35, the high of Dec. 18.
In U.S. trading Wednesday, gold and other precious metals soared in the first trading session after U.S. policymakers finally resolved the fiscal cliff. Comex gold added 0.80% to settle at USD1,689.25 a troy ounce in U.S. trading.
On Tuesday night, the U.S. House of Representatives ratified a fiscal cliff bill previously approved by the Senate that will raise taxes on American households earning over USD450,000 per year. Those taxes increases are designed to increase government revenue by USD620 billion over 10 years.
While gold closed with its twelfth consecutive annual gain in 2012, December was a rough month for the yellow metal with a loss of more than 2%. However, with risk appetite renewed at least for now, gold is now resting at two-week highs.
The allure of the yellow metal could increase in the near-term because the U.S. must deal with another touchy economic issue, that being the debt ceiling. Congress must extend the debt ceiling, or the amount of debt which the U.S. can carry at any one time, in February. That is sure to be another market-moving political debate because ratings agencies have already hinted that another downgraded to the U.S. sovereign credit rating is possible if the debt ceiling is not extended.
Standard & Poor’s stripped the U.S. of the prestigious AAA credit rating in 2011, causing a slide U.S. stocks. Uncertainty over the debt ceiling issue could stoke demand for safe haven assets such as gold, though it is worth noting Congress has raised the debt limit 10 times in the past 10 years.
Elsewhere, Comex silver climbed 0.42% to USD31.38 per ounce in Asian trading while copper for March delivery fell 0.05% to USD3.733 per ounce.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold for February delivery rose 0.01% to USD1,688.85 per troy ounce in Asian trading Thursday. The yellow metal traded as high as USD1,690.45 and as low as USD1,685.95 per ounce. Gold futures were likely to test support USD1,652.22 a troy ounce, the low of Dec. 26, and resistance at USD1,704.35, the high of Dec. 18.
In U.S. trading Wednesday, gold and other precious metals soared in the first trading session after U.S. policymakers finally resolved the fiscal cliff. Comex gold added 0.80% to settle at USD1,689.25 a troy ounce in U.S. trading.
On Tuesday night, the U.S. House of Representatives ratified a fiscal cliff bill previously approved by the Senate that will raise taxes on American households earning over USD450,000 per year. Those taxes increases are designed to increase government revenue by USD620 billion over 10 years.
While gold closed with its twelfth consecutive annual gain in 2012, December was a rough month for the yellow metal with a loss of more than 2%. However, with risk appetite renewed at least for now, gold is now resting at two-week highs.
The allure of the yellow metal could increase in the near-term because the U.S. must deal with another touchy economic issue, that being the debt ceiling. Congress must extend the debt ceiling, or the amount of debt which the U.S. can carry at any one time, in February. That is sure to be another market-moving political debate because ratings agencies have already hinted that another downgraded to the U.S. sovereign credit rating is possible if the debt ceiling is not extended.
Standard & Poor’s stripped the U.S. of the prestigious AAA credit rating in 2011, causing a slide U.S. stocks. Uncertainty over the debt ceiling issue could stoke demand for safe haven assets such as gold, though it is worth noting Congress has raised the debt limit 10 times in the past 10 years.
Elsewhere, Comex silver climbed 0.42% to USD31.38 per ounce in Asian trading while copper for March delivery fell 0.05% to USD3.733 per ounce.