Gold prices scaled historic heights above US$1,150 per ounce this week, buoyed by the weak greenback and recent central bank purchases of the precious metal, analysts said.
Traders said the dollar’s overall weak tone was due to the prospect of US interest rates remaining close to zero for some time yet.
PRECIOUS METALS: Gold hit an all-time peak at US$1,152.85 an ounce on Wednesday, extending this year’s record-breaking run.
“The price of gold moved further north as the dollar’s decline continued,” analyst Marius Paun at ODL Markets said. “Whilst the US Federal Reserve continues to reiterate that interest rates will remain low, investors appear willing to buy in the precious metal.”
“Like all risk assets, [gold] is benefiting from the sliding dollar, but it is also a safe haven for investors who are concerned about the safety of other currencies,” David Morrison at spread-betting firm GFT said.
By late on Friday on the London Bullion Market, gold rose to US$1,140 an ounce from US$1,104 a week earlier.
Silver gained to US$18.18 an ounce from US$17.32.
On the London Platinum and Palladium Market, platinum advanced to US$1,435 an ounce at the late fixing on Friday from US$1,359 the previous week.
Palladium climbed to US$360 an ounce from US$354.
OIL: Oil prices rose in a week of volatile trade. Analysts on Friday said crude futures were likely to stay under US$80 because of high oil inventories in the US, the world’s biggest energy-consuming nation, analysts said.
“Relatively swollen US stockpiles [are] still weighing,” VTB Capital commodities analyst Andrey Kryuchenkov in London said.
By Friday on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), light sweet crude for delivery in December firmed to US$76.71 from US$76.41 a week earlier.
On London’s InterContinental Exchange (ICE), Brent North Sea crude for January delivery advanced to US$77.03, compared with US$75.65 for the December contract last week.
SECURITY: The purpose for giving Hong Kong and Macau residents more lenient paths to permanent residency no longer applies due to China’s policies, a source said The government is considering removing an optional path to citizenship for residents from Hong Kong and Macau, and lengthening the terms for permanent residence eligibility, a source said yesterday. In a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment, an official familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity said. The move was part of “national security-related legislative reform,” they added. Under the amendments, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for
CRITICAL MOVE: TSMC’s plan to invest another US$100 billion in US chipmaking would boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in the global market, the premier said The government would ensure that the most advanced chipmaking technology stays in Taiwan while assisting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in investing overseas, the Presidential Office said yesterday. The statement follows a joint announcement by the world’s largest contract chipmaker and US President Donald Trump on Monday that TSMC would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next four years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US, which would include construction of three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center. The government knew about the deal in advance and would assist, Presidential
‘DANGEROUS GAME’: Legislative Yuan budget cuts have already become a point of discussion for Democrats and Republicans in Washington, Elbridge Colby said Taiwan’s fall to China “would be a disaster for American interests” and Taipei must raise defense spending to deter Beijing, US President Donald Trump’s pick to lead Pentagon policy, Elbridge Colby, said on Tuesday during his US Senate confirmation hearing. The nominee for US undersecretary of defense for policy told the Armed Services Committee that Washington needs to motivate Taiwan to avoid a conflict with China and that he is “profoundly disturbed” about its perceived reluctance to raise defense spending closer to 10 percent of GDP. Colby, a China hawk who also served in the Pentagon in Trump’s first team,
The arrival of a cold front tomorrow could plunge temperatures into the mid-teens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Temperatures yesterday rose to 28°C to 30°C in northern and eastern Taiwan, and 32°C to 33°C in central and southern Taiwan, CWA data showed. Similar but mostly cloudy weather is expected today, the CWA said. However, the arrival of a cold air mass tomorrow would cause a rapid drop in temperatures to 15°C cooler than the previous day’s highs. The cold front, which is expected to last through the weekend, would bring steady rainfall tomorrow, along with multiple waves of showers
RSS