By Barani Krishnan
Investing.com - Gold prices returned to the green on Thursday as President Donald Trump’s political troubles and other global worries prompted longs to lend support to the yellow metal after a profit-taking run the previous day.
Gold futures and spot prices of bullion ticked higher on political jitters after the release of a whistleblower complaint against Trump fleshed out the allegations behind the impeachment inquiry that the House of Representatives launched against him earlier this week.
U.S. gold futures for December delivery settled up $2.90, or 0.2%, at $1,515.20 per ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures lost 1.8% on Wednesday, or nearly all the gains from a three-day rally spurred by headlines on Middle East tensions and weak economic data out of Europe.
Spot gold, reflective of trades in bullion, was up $5.50, or 0.4%, at $1,509.09 at 2:45 PM ET (18:45 GMT).
“Impeachment efforts continue, so gold (is) in a recovery mode,” said George Gero, precious-metals analyst and managing director at RBC Wealth Management.
“A continued range of $1,500 to $1,550 is expected to be in place for a while,” Gero said.
Gold picked up some vigor as Wall Street slid early in the day on fresh developments related to the Trump impeachment inquiry. After days of pressure by Democrats, the White House released a reconstructed transcript of a call between the president and his Ukrainian counterpart, where Trump is heard asking a “favor” before discussing a corruption probe in the East European nation that links to his political rival, former VP Joe Biden.
Other safe-haven assets were also supported in Wednesday’s session, after an easing in 10- and 30-year Treasury bond yields.
In European trading hours, gold was propped up by Brexit risks keeping a lid on U.K. yields. The resignation of Germany’s Sabine Lautenschlaeger from the European Central Bank’s board was another supportive factor, as it removes one of the obstacles that incoming president Christine Lagarde may have faced in ramping up the ECB’s quantitative easing.
The ECB has committed itself to restart outright purchases of 20 billion euros a month of government bonds from November, a move that will depress yields and increase the relative attractiveness of gold.
In Asia, Bank of Japan governor Haruhiko Kuroda also hinted at further monetary easing at the BoJ’s next meeting, saying the risks of it missing its inflation target were rising.