Metals Stocks: Gold prices head higher after last week’s decline as investors bet on continued central-bank stimulus

Gold prices on Monday rose off a two-month low as investors wagered that stimulus from central banks will remain in place for the foreseeable future, bolstering the case for bullion, despite some strength in the U.S. stock market.

“The global economic recovery will still require further aid and gold prices should still be supported over the medium-term,” wrote Edward Moya, senior market analyst at brokerage Oanda, in a daily research note.

The moves higher for gold on Monday come after the commodity closed out Friday’s trade lower and notched a sharp weekly slide, following an unexpected rise in U.S. jobs for May and a drop in the nation’s unemployment rate to 13.3% from 14.7%, pushing prices for the haven metal to their lowest finish since April.

“Gold prices are shrugging off the last week’s decline on hopes the Fed will not tap the breaks in supporting the U.S. economic recovery,” Moya speculated.

August gold GCQ20, +1.26% on Comex climbed $13.10, or 0.8%, at $1,696.10 an ounce, after finishing last week’s trade at the lowest level since early April and notching a weekly decline of 3.9%, according to FactSet data based on the most-active contracts.

Meanwhile, July silver SIN20, +2.35% added 27.6 cents, or 1.6%, to trade at $17.755 an ounce, settling Friday at its lowest level in two weeks to suffer a 5.5% weekly decline.

Meanwhile, global equities were mixed, but U.S. benchmark stock indexes traded mostly higher as investors watched the Federal Reserve, which was set to release on Wednesday an updated policy statement at the conclusion of its two-day meeting on Wednesday.

Read: Fed will be encouraged by the May job-market surprise but unlikely to rip up its low-rates-for-longer script

“Still bearish for the safe-haven metals is upbeat trader and investor risk appetite recently that has seen money flowing into equities markets,” said Jim Wyckoff, senior analyst Kitco.com, in a daily note.

However, “a shaky U.S. dollar on the foreign exchange market” is among the bullish “‘outside market’ forces working in favor of the metals market bulls to start the trading week,” he said. In Monday dealings, the ICE U.S. Dollar index DXY, -0.25% traded 0.2% lower, providing some support for dollar-denominated gold prices.

Elsewhere on Comex, July copper HGN20, +0.54% tacked on 0.4% to reach $2.565 a pound, after logging a 5% weekly gain on Friday. July platinum PLN20, +3.79% rose 3.5% at $$859.20 an ounce, following a weekly loss of more than 5%, while September palladium PAU20, +4.57% climbed 3.1% to $2,013.70 an ounce, following a weekly slump of around 1%.

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