FUNDAMENTALS
Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,838.51 per ounce by 0039 GMT. On Monday, prices had dipped to their lowest since Dec. 2 at $1,809.90. U.S. gold futures gained 0.4% to $1,836.50.
The U.S. dollar hit a four-week high against rival currencies in the previous session.
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee to run the Treasury Department, Janet Yellen, will tell the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday that the government must “act big” with its next coronavirus relief package.
Biden has outlined a $1.9 trillion stimulus package proposal to jump-start the virus-stricken economy.
Euro zone finance ministers pledged continued fiscal support for their economies on Monday and discussed the design of post-pandemic recovery plans as the European Commission warned the COVID-19 crisis was making the bloc’s economic imbalances worse.
The head of the International Monetary Fund said the global lender needed more resources to help heavily indebted countries, citing a highly uncertain global economic outlook.
The head of the World Health Organization urged countries and manufacturers to spread COVID-19 vaccines doses more fairly around the world.
A fund of Russia’s Norilsk Nickel has launched Blockchain-tracked securities known as Exchange Traded Commodities (ETCs) which offer investors exposure to the spot prices of palladium, platinum, gold and silver without owning them.
Silver fell 1.1% to $25.05 an ounce. Platinum rose 1.3% to $1,092.65, while palladium shed 0.3% to $2,363.89.
