Gold extends the losses as Fed rate hike risks increase amid prolonged US-Iran stalemate
FUNDAMENTAL OVERVIEW
After a brief consolidation on Monday, gold fell into new lows yesterday. The main drivers in the past few days have been Treasury yields which rose above March’s highs, with the 30-year reaching the highest level since 2007.
Inflation worries and Fed rate hike risks intensified recently as markets started to grow impatient amid the prolonged US-Iran stalemate and Strait of Hormuz closure. Traders are now pricing in a 50% chance of a rate hike by year-end.
On the US-Iran front nothing has changed. Trump continues to threaten Iran with new strikes if they don’t make a deal, while Tehran warns the US that they have gained military knowledge from previous hostilities and that “a return to war would feature many more surprises”.
The main problem for gold remains the Fed. Although the central bank is still keeping an easing bias, we are now approaching a point where the Fed is likely to drop it entirely. If nothing changes before the June meeting, we might be in for a hawkish surprise as inflation continues to run hot and the US data remains resilient.
In the short-term, a resolution and the reopening of the Strait will likely support gold on falling oil prices and increased rate cut bets. But if the Strait remains closed for longer and oil prices stay elevated, the risk of the Fed being forced to hike anyway increases.
GOLD TECHNICAL ANALYSIS – DAILY TIMEFRAME
On the daily chart, we can see that gold fell below the May’s low but it’s still trading in the middle of the two key trendlines, so there’s not much we can glean from this timeframe. We need to zoom in to see some more details.
GOLD TECHNICAL ANALYSIS – 4 HOUR TIMEFRAME
On the 4 hour chart, we can see the price broke below the 4,500 support and extended the drop as more sellers piled in. The natural target for the sellers should be the 4,350 level. If we get a retest of the broken support, we can expect the sellers to step in again with a defined risk above it to keep pushing into new lows. The buyers, on the other hand, will look for a break higher to extend the pullback into the downward trendline.
GOLD TECHNICAL ANALYSIS – 1 HOUR TIMEFRAME
On the 1 hour chart, we have a minor downward trendline defining the bearish momentum on this timeframe. The sellers will likely continue to lean on the trendline with a defined risk above it to keep pushing into new lows, while the buyers will look for a break above the trendline and the 4,500 resistance to position for a pullback into the next trendline. The red lines define the average daily range for today.
UPCOMING CATALYSTS
Today, we have the FOMC meeting minutes. Tomorrow, we get the latest US Jobless Claims figures and the US Flash PMIs.
This article was written by Giuseppe Dellamotta at investinglive.com.提供 MainLink:Investinglive RSS Breaking News Feed
