Investing.com – Gold futures were largely unchanged on Wednesday, hovering close to the psychologically-important level of USD1,800-an-ounce as fears over Italy’s debt crisis intensified after Italian bond yields soared above the critical 7% threshold.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery traded at USD1,797.85 a troy ounce during early U.S. morning trade, easing down 0.08%.
The December contract traded between a range of USD1,779.25 an ounce, the daily low and USD1,800.95, the daily high.
The yield on Italian 10-year government bonds spiked to a euro-lifetime high of 7.48% earlier, a level widely viewed as unsustainable in the long-term. Smaller euro zone nations Greece, Ireland and Portugal had to seek international bailouts once their borrowing costs rose above the critical 7%-mark.
Spanish government debt came under selling pressure as well, with the 10-year yields rising to 5.87%, the highest level since early August.
Italy and Spain are the euro zone’s third and fourth largest economies. Markets long have feared a debt crisis centering on those two nations would have the potential to bring down the single currency.
Elsewhere, officials in Greece were scrambling to name a new prime minister, as efforts continued to avert an imminent default by implementing a new bailout program.
Investors often buy gold as a refuge against economic and political uncertainty.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rallied 1.4% to trade at 77.86.
Gold prices often move inversely to the U.S. dollar, as gold becomes more expensive for buyers using other currencies.
Meanwhile, gold traders will be paying close attention to a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke later in the day for any possible signs of further quantitative easing from the central bank.
Last week, Bernanke signaled that an additional round of asset purchases was a “viable option”.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery fell 1.5% lower to trade at USD34.62 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery dropped 1.21% to trade at USD3.490 a pound.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for December delivery traded at USD1,797.85 a troy ounce during early U.S. morning trade, easing down 0.08%.
The December contract traded between a range of USD1,779.25 an ounce, the daily low and USD1,800.95, the daily high.
The yield on Italian 10-year government bonds spiked to a euro-lifetime high of 7.48% earlier, a level widely viewed as unsustainable in the long-term. Smaller euro zone nations Greece, Ireland and Portugal had to seek international bailouts once their borrowing costs rose above the critical 7%-mark.
Spanish government debt came under selling pressure as well, with the 10-year yields rising to 5.87%, the highest level since early August.
Italy and Spain are the euro zone’s third and fourth largest economies. Markets long have feared a debt crisis centering on those two nations would have the potential to bring down the single currency.
Elsewhere, officials in Greece were scrambling to name a new prime minister, as efforts continued to avert an imminent default by implementing a new bailout program.
Investors often buy gold as a refuge against economic and political uncertainty.
The dollar index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, rallied 1.4% to trade at 77.86.
Gold prices often move inversely to the U.S. dollar, as gold becomes more expensive for buyers using other currencies.
Meanwhile, gold traders will be paying close attention to a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke later in the day for any possible signs of further quantitative easing from the central bank.
Last week, Bernanke signaled that an additional round of asset purchases was a “viable option”.
Elsewhere on the Comex, silver for December delivery fell 1.5% lower to trade at USD34.62 a troy ounce, while copper for December delivery dropped 1.21% to trade at USD3.490 a pound.