2020.07.2718:56:00UTC+00Gold Futures Extend Recent Gains, Hit New All-time Closing High

Extending their recent impressive climb, gold futures went on to scale a new all-time high on Monday, as the dollar tumbled to a two-year low, amid rising tensions between the U.S. and China, and on optimism about further stimulus from the Federal Reserve.

The Fed is scheduled to announce its monetary policy this Wednesday.

The dollar index, which tumbled to 93.48 around mid-morning, was last seen at 96.61, down as much as 0.87% from previous close.

Gold futures for August settled with a gain of $33.50 or about 1.8% at $1,931.00 an ounce, the highest close ever. The contract hit a new intraday record of $1,941.90, moving well past the previous high of $1,923.70 an ounce posted on 6 September 2011.

Silver futures for September ended up $1.65 or about 7.2% at $24.501 an ounce, the highest closing in almost seven years.

Copper futures for September settled at $2.8975 per pound, posting a modest 0.2% gain.

In virus news, global coronavirus cases exceeded 16 million over the weekend with over 644,000 deaths. China reported its highest number of cases in three months after fresh clusters hit three separate regions.

The U.K. government announced a 14-day quarantine on travelers coming from Spain. In Spain, more than 900 new cases were reported on Friday.

In geopolitical news, U.S.-China tensions have escalated amid issues ranging from the new coronavirus and telecoms-gear maker Huawei to China's territorial claims in the South China Sea and Hong Kong crackdown.

Many observers are pessimistic about deteriorating U.S.-China relations following the closures of consulates in Houston and Chengdu.