Gold Plunges as Recession Fear Disrupts Global Market

Gold, the world’s leading haven asset, plunged with global uncertainty as investors continued to accumulate Dollars ahead of the inevitable recession.

In a recession, cash is the king. Hence, while global investors prefer to save in dollars, especially with borrowing costs on the rise and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) expected to raise interest rates by another 50% to 75% basis points in the month of July.

The U.S Dollar rose to a 20-year high this week and is expected to continue in the near term as I do not see demand for the greenback abating anytime soon given the severity of global risks and uncertainty.

The price of gold dropped from $1814.19 per ounce it peaked on Monday to $1732.14 on Wednesday before slightly paring losses to $1743.74 at 10:36 am Nigerian time on Thursday.

“Gold’s price reaction has been rather muted as it had already started to price in a rising probability of another sharp rate hike in July,” said Suki Cooper, an analyst with Standard Chartered.

“In recent sessions, gold has succumbed to the risk-off sentiment as the dollar has benefited.” Risk-off is when traders and investors reduce their exposure to risk and concentrate on protecting their capital.

According to Tai Wong, an independent metals trader based in New York, rising interest rates means holding the dollar at no additional interest rate is better.

He said, “The hawkish Fed minutes which suggested an ‘even more restrictive stance’ provided no relief for metals markets.”

“While a short-covering rally is possible if payrolls are soft, a lasting upturn (for gold) will require a softer U.S. CPI reading next week. That’s needed to pull the Fed back from launching another massive tightening volley,” Wong added.