Gold Sees Moderate Selling Pressure ! Gold Sees Moderate Selling Pressure After FOMC Minutes Suggest June Rake Hike
Wednesday May 18, 2016 14:14
(Kitco News) - Gold prices are moderately lower in afternoon U.S. trading Tuesday, pressured by just-released FOMC minutes that were deemed to favor the hawkish camp on U.S. monetary policy. A higher U.S. dollar index on this day was also a bearish element for the precious metals markets. June Comex gold futures were last down $9.30 an ounce at $1,267.60. July Comex silver was last down $0.200 at $17.05 an ounce.
The minutes of the latest Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting said FOMC members will raise U.S. interest rates in June if second-quarter U.S. economic growth continues on a sound track, which is what the FOMC expects to happen. Thus, unless there is some seriously downbeat economic data released in the next few weeks, there will be another Fed rate hike in June.
U.S. stock indexes turned negative in the aftermath of the FOMC minutes, while the U.S. dollar index rallied. U.S. Treasuries sold off on the FOMC minutes.
World stock markets were mostly weaker overnight, partly on continued worries about the health of China’s economy, which is the world’s second-largest. There was also continuing trepidation regarding the future path of U.S. monetary policy.