18.05.202110:58 Forex Analysis & Reviews: Gold jumps to January highs

On Monday, gold futures for delivery in June advanced by 1.6%, or $29.50. The closing price of gold futures on the COMEX exchange was $1,867.60. The precious metal reached a similar high back in January.

The most important thing about yesterday's movement is that the price finally went above the 200 MA. A bullish momentum at this level may push the price of gold further up.

There have been several reasons for the asset's return to the 4-months highs, chief executive officer at Metals Daily Ross Norman said. A weaker US dollar, as well as a fall in the main global stock indices, could have boosted the price.

The price went up yesterday after the comment made by the Fed's Vice Chairman Richard Clarida. He stated that the US economy had not yet reached the threshold to warrant scaling back the central bank's massive bond purchases.

The vice chairman's announcement brought the greenback under pressure. On Monday, the US dollar went down and sugged by 0.2%. In that light, demand for gold increased among holders of other currencies.

Gold extended gains after the release of the New York Empire State Manufacturing Index. The reading edged down to 24.3 in May from an over 3-year high of 26.3 reported in April.

At the same time, the new orders index rose by 2 points to 28.9 in May, while shipments increased by 4.7 points to 29.7.

According to Ed Moya, a Senior Market Analyst at OANDA, an uneven global economic recovery facilitates the continuation of a loose monetary policy by central banks, which is always welcomed in the gold market.

The expert holds China as an example. The country's economic growth is slowing down. Moya believes that this should push Beijing to maintain its stimulus program for a longer period of time.

Meanwhile, growing inflation concerns keep driving the gold market. There are hopes that this week will somehow clear things up.

On May 19th, the FOMC minutes will be published. Investors expect to receive answers to many bothering questions. They want to know about the current state of the economy and inflation, as well as whether the Fed will maintain its stimulus plan further.

The greenback's short-term movement depends on the minutes, and, consequently, sentiment in the gold market since the precious metal has always been sensitive to moves in the US dollar.

On Tuesday, the greenback is stable against the Japanese yen and other currencies. At the same time, it lost 0.1% against the euro. In this light, the bullish trend of gold that started last Thursday is likely to extend.

During early trading hours, the price broke the $1,870 mark and reached its high as of February 1st. At the moment of writing, gold was trading at $1,870.85 per ounce. The difference in value from the previous day's closing price was $3.25, or 0.17%.

Kitco's senior analyst Jim Wyckoff notes that the current gold chart has a clear technical advantage. He expects the price to close above a strong resistance level of $1,881, while support is located at $1,800.

The aggravating COVID-19 situation in the Asia-Pacific region can also push the metal to new highs. A new strain of coronavirus is now actively spreading there, which undermines hopes for an early global economic recovery.

All this can have a positive effect on the price of gold and other safe-haven assets that are traditionally viewed by investors as protection against inflation.

The commodity market, led by gold, keeps moving in a bullish trend. Yesterday, all main metalls traded on COMEX closed upward. Thus, silver soared by 3.3% to $28.27, the high unseen since February.

Copper gained 1.2%, closing at $4.71 per ounce. Platinum spiked by 1.8% to $1,244.50. Palladium added less that 0.1%, closing at $2,895.90.