Gold futures climbed Wednesday, settling at their highest in two weeks and gaining week-to-date, on the back of some weakness in the dollar, a day after a tech- and energy-led rout prompted the Dow and S&P 500 to erase gains for 2018.
Gold for December delivery GCZ8, -0.04% on Comex rose $6.80, or 0.6%, to settle at $1,228 an ounce, trading roughly 0.4% higher week-to-date. It settled at the highest for a most-active contract since Nov. 7, according to FactSet data. December silver SIZ8, -0.26% added 23.3 cents, or 1.6%, to $14.502 an ounce, with prices for the white metal up 0.8% for the week so far.
Gold ended lower Tuesday to snap a four-day winning streak, failing to maintain haven-related support as equities sold off. Benchmark U.S. stock indexes climbed Wednesday. Trading was subdued ahead of Thanksgiving in the U.S. on Thursday.
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"With the lower price action in gold [Tuesday] taking place in the face of sharp declines in equities and rising anxiety, it is clear that the gold market is behaving like a classic physical commodity market instead of a safe-haven financial tool," analysts at Zaner Precious Metals said in a daily note Wednesday.
Given that, the analysts were not surprised by gold gains Wednesday, which came "in conjunction with the recovery in global equity prices."
"However, while the dollar is tracking lower it remains within striking distance to [Tuesday's] sharp range up high in a fashion that leaves some currency threat against gold and silver in place," they added.
The dollar was weaker versus most major rivals Wednesday as gold futures settled, with the ICE U.S. Dollar Index DXY, +0.00% a gauge of the currency against a basket of six major rivals, off nearly 0.2%. It traded up 0.2% for the week, but held onto a month-to-date loss of almost 0.5%. Gold often moves inversely to the dollar. A weaker dollar can make gold more attractive to users of other currencies, while a stronger currency can dent demand.
In other metals trade, December palladium PAZ8, +0.10% rose $7.10, or 0.6%, to $1,133.20 an ounce, while January platinum PLF9, -0.07% added $3.60, or 0.4%, to $850.60 an ounce.
December copper HGZ8, +0.13% rose 2.8 cents, or 1%, to $2.795 a pound.
In exchange-traded fund trading, the SPDR Gold Shares GLD, +0.16% was up nearly 0.4%, while the iShares Silver Trust SLV, +1.12% added 1.3%. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF climbed 3%.
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