(Bloomberg) -- Gold declined as investors rush to raise cash to cover losses in other markets amid a rout in U.S. stocks, with global leaders striking a pessimistic tone over the likely economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
Wall Street stocks plunged the most since 1987 on Monday after President Donald Trump warned the economic disruption from the virus could last into summer. While U.S. futures had modest gains early in Asia, contracts pointed to losses in Tokyo and Hong Kong.
A wave of global central bank stimulus and a pledge from the leaders of the Group of Seven to do whatever is necessary to ensure a globally coordinated response has failed to quell investor concerns about the economic hit from the coronavirus.
Precious metals have been caught up in the wave of heavy selling across markets, Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. senior commodity strategist Daniel Hynes said in a note. “U.S. equity markets suffered another sharp correction, which saw investors lose confidence in the ability of government and central banks to combat the economic effects of the spread of the coronavirus.”
Spot gold dropped as much as 1.1% to $1,497.49 an ounce and was at $1,505.54 by 8:13 a.m. in Singapore. Prices are down 12% from a seven-year high reached a week ago and tumbled the most since 1983 last week.
Silver rose 1.4% after a 12% loss Monday. Palladium gained 3% after plunging 12% on Monday, while platinum advanced 1.1%.
