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Gold futures logged a second straight sharp loss Tuesday but held above a a key level of support, as the precious metal retreated amid progress on COVID-19 vaccines that helped to send the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +1.50% above a milestone at 30,000 for the first time.
Progress toward remedies for COVID-19 has reduced the need for the safe-haven metal after investors earlier this year rushed into bullion as the U.S. dollar rose amid economic uncertainties created by the pandemic.
Further clarity on the U.S. political scene, after President Trump late Monday said his aides would cooperate with President-elect Joe Biden’s transition to the White House, is also easing investors’ concerns about a drawn-out fight over the Nov. 3 election.
The Dow surged to trade in record territory and investors were also piling into small-capitalization stocks, with the Russell 2000 index RUT, +1.78% also trading on pace to close at an all-time high for a second session in a row.
“Covid Vaccine news and the smooth beginning of the transition of Biden as the US president has resulted in gold and silver falling,” wrote Chintan Karnani, chief market analyst at Insignia Consultants.
December gold GCZ20, -1.96% GOLD, -1.24% lost $33.20, or 1.8%, to settle at $1,804.60 an ounce, taking it to its lowest level since mid July, according to Dow Jones Market Data. It touched an intraday low at $1,797.10.
Gold dealer’s see the metal’s support level around $1,800, around its 200-day moving average, after slipping beneath a key level at $1,850 on Monday. Moving averages are seen by technical analysts as potential dividing line between bullish and bearish momentum in an asset.
Gold’s slide also came as silver for December delivery SIZ20, -1.72% SI00, -1.72% lost 33.3 cents, or 1.4%, to settle at $23.30 an ounce, after gold’s sister metal declined 3% in the previous session.
So far this week, gold is off 3.7%, while silver has declined by more than 4.5%.
On Monday, gold and silver prices took a fresh hit from reports from drugmaker AstraZeneca, who said a late-stage study found that the vaccine it is developing with the University of Oxford had an up to 90% efficacy rate. That news followed similarly upbeat vaccine news from Pfizer and its partner BioNTech, as well as from drugmaker Moderna earlier this month.
“Finally, the main casualty of the latest bout of euphoria has been gold,” wrote Marios Hadjikyriacos, investment analyst at XM, in a Tuesday note.
Elsewhere on Comex, December copper HGZ20, +1.48%, meanwhile, added 4.15 cents, to settle at $3.2995 a pound, a rise of 1.3%. January platinum PLF21, +3.34% picked up $26.60, or 2.8%, to end at $958.30 an ounce, while December palladium PAZ20, -0.24% edged $1.60, or 0.07%, lower to settle at $2,352.20 an ounce .
