Investing.com – Gold futures pared gains on Monday, but remained well supported close to the record high amid mounting fears over a possible U.S. sovereign debt default after talks to raise the country’s debt ceiling broke down over the weekend.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,615.55 a troy ounce during U.S. morning trade, gaining 0.8%.
It earlier rose as much as 1.3% to trade at an all-time high of USD1,625.05 a troy ounce, eclipsing the previous record high of USD1,610.70 a troy ounce it hit on July 19.
With time running out, talks between Democrats and Republicans from the U.S. Congress broke down over the weekend, prompting White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley to warn that there would be a "few stressful days" ahead for financial markets, as the deadline to raise the USD14.3 trillion debt ceiling was only nine days away.
House Speaker John Boehner told Republican lawmakers Sunday evening that no "grand deal" on raising the debt ceiling was possible with President Barack Obama.
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said Republican "intransigence" was "pushing us to the brink of a default on the full faith and credit of the United States."
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.
Rating agency Standard & Poor's last week reiterated that there was a 50-50 chance the U.S. AAA credit rating could be cut within three months if a deal isn’t accompanied by a “credible solution” on the debt burden.
Meanwhile, in the euro zone, Moody’s downgraded Greece’s sovereign debt rating by three notches to Ca, just one notch above default, saying the country still faced serious medium term solvency challenges despite the fresh bailout package.
Gold is often seen as an alternative currency in times of global economic uncertainty and a refuge from financial risk.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for September delivery jumped 1.07% to trade at USD40.52 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery eased down 0.02% to trade at USD4.404 a pound.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for October delivery traded at USD1,615.55 a troy ounce during U.S. morning trade, gaining 0.8%.
It earlier rose as much as 1.3% to trade at an all-time high of USD1,625.05 a troy ounce, eclipsing the previous record high of USD1,610.70 a troy ounce it hit on July 19.
With time running out, talks between Democrats and Republicans from the U.S. Congress broke down over the weekend, prompting White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley to warn that there would be a "few stressful days" ahead for financial markets, as the deadline to raise the USD14.3 trillion debt ceiling was only nine days away.
House Speaker John Boehner told Republican lawmakers Sunday evening that no "grand deal" on raising the debt ceiling was possible with President Barack Obama.
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said Republican "intransigence" was "pushing us to the brink of a default on the full faith and credit of the United States."
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.
Rating agency Standard & Poor's last week reiterated that there was a 50-50 chance the U.S. AAA credit rating could be cut within three months if a deal isn’t accompanied by a “credible solution” on the debt burden.
Meanwhile, in the euro zone, Moody’s downgraded Greece’s sovereign debt rating by three notches to Ca, just one notch above default, saying the country still faced serious medium term solvency challenges despite the fresh bailout package.
Gold is often seen as an alternative currency in times of global economic uncertainty and a refuge from financial risk.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for September delivery jumped 1.07% to trade at USD40.52 a troy ounce, while copper for September delivery eased down 0.02% to trade at USD4.404 a pound.