GoldPrice

Happy Friday, traders. Welcome to our weekly recap of the data and news that drove precious metals prices over the last five days. Gold prices have rebounded from a dire start to the week and look poised to ultimately squeeze out a gain for the last five days of trading.

The Commerce Department announced on Friday that retail sales increased 0.3% in October vs. 0.2% expected, driven by increases in vehicle purchases and gasoline prices. The 0.3% gain is in contrast the -0.3% drop seen the month prior, the first decline in seven months.

The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits rose to a five-month high last week. However, multiple states were estimated due to the Veteran’s Day holiday on Monday, which may have skewed the results. The Labor Department issued a report on Thursday indicating that claims for benefits rose 14,000 to 225,000 (seasonally adjusted) for the week ended November 9, the highest reading since June 22.

The cost of US goods and services rose at the fastest pace in six months in October, driven by a steep increase in gas prices. The producer price index (PPI) rose 0.4% last month, above market expectations of 0.3%.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell issued statements earlier today at the Joint Economic Committee, commenting on the health of the economy and the proposed monetary policy for the near future. Powell stated that low inflation pressure and overseas weakness remain a concern, while the US economy is still on course for moderate growth.

Core consumer price inflation in the US dropped marginally, on a year-over-year basis, in the month of October, as reported this morning by the US Labor Department this morning. Conversely, the more volatile headline CPI number rose by the same slight margin, lifted by higher energy prices in the same month. Overall, the Consumer Price Index for October was broadly in-line with the two assessments held by many market analysts: 1.) the environment and inputs for inflation (a tight labor market, increased prices due to trade war tariffs) remains generally unchanged in recent months, and 2.) the accommodation of the FOMC’s recent “mid-cycle adjustment” into lower short-term rates will take some time to show its effects on the US economy.

Hello traders, welcome back to our weekly preview of the relevant macroeconomic data for those active in the gold, silver, and currency markets.

Happy Friday, traders. Welcome back to our look back at the last week’s gold market and the macroeconomic data and headline news that made in impact on the yellow metal, as well as other safe haven assets and the US Dollar. The format is a little different this week, and a bit shorter than usual as I’m under the weather and I suspect my editors would prefer I only submit what I can write without the help of cough medicine. Lucky for my limitations, with a data calendar this week that was absent any major numbers, there was one dominant driver for the collapsing price action we’ve seen from gold (and silver) this week; so we’re going to focus today’s recap on discussing it.

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits in the week ended November 2 hit a monthly low and remain near a 5-year low, indicating ongoing strength in the labor market despite recessionary pressures. Initial jobless claims dropped 8,000 to 211,000, according to the Labor Department. The figure is slightly below expectations of 215,000.

Nonfarm productivity in the US dropped for the first time in four years, falling -0.3% annually in Q3 2019. The results are in stark contrast with the expectations of a 0.9% increase, indicating that the rise in efficiency earlier in the year was anomalous rather than trend-setting.

The ISM non-manufacturing index came in at 54.7 in October, 2.1 points higher than September’s reading of 52.6. The index shows accelerated growth in the non-manufacturing sector despite increasingly difficult economic conditions worldwide.

Good morning, traders! Welcome to another preview of the macroeconomic calendar for the next five trading days with a focus on what’s relevant to the precious metals and Dollar markets.