Gold Consolidates as Risk Appetite Picks Up

Gold started the week on the defensive after being unable to hold above the key $2,000 level late last week. Meanwhile, the US dollar has stabilized, finding its feet after falling to its lowest levels in over two years last Tuesday.

Appetite for risk among investors was lifted after the FDA authorized a coronavirus treatment that uses blood plasma from recovered patients. The FDA stated that so far 70,000 patients have been treated using blood plasma. In addition, according to a report from the Financial Times, President Trump is considering fast-tracking a UK Covid-19 vaccine before the US election.

Data from Johns Hopkins University shows that global cases of Coronavirus have now risen to 23,443,978 with 809,011 fatalities. The US remains the hardest hit country with 5,703,585 cases and 176,808 deaths.

The S&P 500 closed last week at an all time high, boosted by tech stocks (which make up about a quarter of the index) and stimulus from the Federal Reserve. On Monday morning European stocks and Dow futures climbed higher after the latest round of news on coronavirus treatments.

The market now turns its attention to the annual Jackson Hole Symposium this week and the opening speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell for guidance on the outlook for US monetary policy. The virtual event will be livestreamed to the public on August 27th.

Looking at the gold daily chart we can see that price is currently consolidating for a third day. Trendline support lies to the downside and bulls continue to eye the all time high of 2,075 reached on August 7th.