Gold Set for Best Month in Two Years as Angst Fuels Haven Demand

Gold is soaring, set for the biggest monthly gain in almost two years after the partial U.S. government shutdown and concerns about the 2019 economic outlook stoked demand for the metal as a haven.

Gold futures touched a six-month high as U.S. stocks flirt with a bear market and the shutdown in Washington enters its fifth day amid no signs of progress to resolve the dispute over funding for a wall on the southern border. That’s helped to push money managers to their most bullish position on gold in half a year, while holdings in exchange-traded funds backed by bullion rise.

“New money is coming into the gold market as a result of the shutdown, propelling the move higher ,” Phil Streible, a senior market strategist at RJO Futures, said by phone from Chicago. “The path of least resistance is up.”

Gold futures for February delivery rose 0.5 percent to $1,278.30 per ounce at 9:14 a.m. on the Comex in New York. The metal is up 4.3 percent in December, on course for the biggest monthly advance since January 2017.

Source: Bloomberg Finance L.P.

Chart: Used with permission from Bloomberg Finance L.P.

Read more:

• Oil fundamental and inertia can push prices to new highs
• Goldman Sachs: “Gold is a better hedge than oil in current market conditions”
• Golden years for Gold
• The end-of-year gold rally continues at full speed
• Gold goes over $ 1,500, big players with estimates for the next year