(Kitco News) - A record weekly close for gold is fueling significant bullish sentiment in the marketplace; however, some analysts have said that this breakout still needs to be tested, and investors should be careful about chasing prices.
Results of the Kitco News Weekly Gold Survey show that both Wall Street analysts and retail investors are cautiously optimistic about gold next week.
Gold prices managed to push above $2,050 an ounce Thursday after The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge showed a benign rise in consumer prices. After a slow start Friday, the precious metal started to attract some follow through buying momentum following weaker-than-expected manufacturing and sentiment data.
April gold futures last traded at $2,095.20 an ounce, up 2% from last week. The precious metal’s best performance since late November has created a new record closing price.
While the rally has breathed new life into the precious metals market, some analysts have said that the price action remains sensitive as profit-taking and volatility could push prices back to within their well-defined channel.
Adam Button, chief currency strategist at Forexlive.com, said that Friday’s rally shows how much potential gold has; however, he added that he doesn’t see the rally as being backed by strong fundamentals.
“I just don’t see how a miss in ISM manufacturing could drive prices this high. I would be more convinced this rally was sustainable if it came after really disappointing employment numbers,” he said. “I think investors do need to pay attention because this shows how many investors are waiting for the dollar to crack before jumping into the market.”
James Stanley, senior market strategist at Forex.com, said that he is also not chasing the market, even as he anticipates higher prices in the near-term.
“I don’t think the pivot at the Fed is here yet. And while I have been very bullish on gold the past few weeks, even after the 2k test, spot [prices] trading over $2,075 is something I don’t want to chase here. That was the level that caught the high in 2020 and has remained a significant roadblock for bulls in the three and a half years since,” he said. “The NFP report is going to be a big deal for macro next week, but that’s not until Friday, so there could be some testing around $2100, but I’m not optimistic enough on drive beyond that level to chase the move while near that long-term resistance.”
This week, 14 analysts participated in the Kitco News Gold Survey and not one is bearish on gold in the near term. The survey showed 11 analysts, or 79%, were bullish on gold. At the same time, three analysts, or 21%, were neutral on the precious metal.
Meanwhile, Main Street investor sentiment continues to improve steadily. This week, 175 votes were cast in Kitco’s online survey. In a slight improvement from last week, 77 retail investors, representing 44%, looked for gold to rise next week. Another 43, or 25%, predicted it would be lower, while 55 respondents, or 31%, were neutral on the near-term prospects for the precious metal.
Marc Chandler, Managing Director at Bannockburn Global Forex, said $2,088 could represent a major resistance point for gold next week.
“Beyond that is the record high set on that spike in early December to $2135.60. I think we will see a need for the dollar’s resilience to buckle, and that may take greater confidence in a near-term Fed cut. Some Wall Street economists have begun giving up on a cut, and former Treasury Secretary Summers has cautioned that the next move may still be a hike,” he said.
Phillip Strieble, chief market strategist at Blue Line Futures, said that while gold’s rally is impressive, he would like to see gold hold higher support to confirm that this isn’t another bull trap.
Some analysts have said that while gold is seeing an impressive rally, it faces significant resistance at $2,100 an ounce.
Sean Lusk, co-director of commercial hedging at Walsh Trading, said that he sees potential for gold to go higher but remains hesitant to chase the market.
“We have been consolidating for a while now, so this could have some teeth to it,” he said
Lusk added that investors could look at options to get some exposure to gold and take advantage of the market's momentum. He added that a medium-term play would be to buy $2,100 August gold calls and sell $2,275 February gold puts.
“A modest 5% rally takes the market to $2,175,” he said. “Should August 2100 call trade $70 in the money, we could collect $5K to $6K per spread upon exit, in my opinion.”
DON'T BELIEVE A DAMN WORD YOU READ ON THIS WEBSITE!
The reader is responsible for discerning the validity, factuality or implications of information posted here, be it fictional or based on real events. Moderators on this forum make every effort to review the material posted on this site however, it is not realistically possible for a one man team to manually review each and every one of the posts atomicbobs.com gets on a daily basis.
The content of posts on this site, including but not limited to links to other web sites, are the expressed opinion of the original poster and are in no way representative of or endorsed by the owners or administration of this website. The posts on this website are the opinion of the specific author and are not statements of advice, opinion, or factual information on behalf of the owner or administration of Atomicbobs. This site may contain adult language, if you feel you might be offended by such content, you should log off immediately.
Not all posts on this website are intended as truthful or factual assertion by their authors. Some users of this website are participating in internet role playing, with or without the use of an avatar. NO post on this website should be considered factual information on face value alone. Users are encouraged to
USE DISCERNMENT
and do their own follow up research while reading and posting on this website. Atomicbobs.com reserves the right to make changes to, corrections and/or remove entirely at any time posts made on this website without notice. In addition, Atomicbobs.com disclaims any and all liability for damages incurred directly or indirectly as a result of a post on this website.
This website implements certain security features in order to prevent spam and posting abuse. By making a post on this website you consent to any automated security checks required by our system to authenticate your IP address as belonging to an actual human. It is forbidden to make posts on this website from open proxy servers. By making a post on this website you consent to an automated one time limited port scan of your IP address which is required by our security system to validate the authenticity of your internet connection.
This site is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied. You should not assume that this site is error-free or that it will be suitable for the particular purpose which you have in mind when using it. In no event shall Atomicbobs.com be liable for any special, incidental, indirect or consequential damages of any kind, or any damages whatsoever, including, without limitation, those resulting from loss of use, data or profits, whether or not advised of the possibility of damage, and on any theory of liability, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of this site or other documents which are referenced by or linked to this site.
Some events depicted in certain posting and threads on this website may be fictitious and any similarity to any person living or dead is merely coincidental. Some other articles may be based on actual events but which in certain cases incidents, characters and timelines have been changed for dramatic purposes. Certain characters may be composites, or entirely fictitious.
We do not discriminate against the mentally ill!
Fair Use Notice:
This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Users may make such material available in an effort to advance awareness and understanding of issues relating to civil rights, economics, individual rights, international affairs, liberty, science & technology, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law.
At some point freedom of speech and copyright law merge. The following interpretation of "Fair Use" and subsequent posting policy were developed with the assistance of qualified legal council however, we are not lawyers and cannot offer you legal advise as to the limits of "Fair Use"
In accordance with industry accepted best practices we ask that users limit their copy / paste of copyrighted material to the relevant portions of the article you wish to discuss and no more than 50% of the source material, provide a link back to the original article and provide your original comments / criticism in your post with the article.
Though legally each situation is evaluated independently according to guidelines that were intentionally left open to interpretation, we believe generally this policy represents "Fair Use" of any such copyrighted material for the purposes of education and discussion.
You are responsible for what you "publish" on the internet. You must be sure any copyrighted material you choose to post for discussion on this forum falls within the limits of "Fair Use" as defined by the law.
If you are a legal copyright holder or a designated agent for such and you believe a post on this website falls outside the boundaries of "Fair Use" and legitimately infringes on yours or your clients copyright
we may be contacted concerning copyright matters at:
If you require a courier address please send a fax or email and we will provide you with the required information.
For expedited human review & removal of potential copyright violations we encourage users & copyright holders to utilize the "Report Copyright Violation" button that accompanies each post published on this website.
In accordance with section 512 of the U.S. Copyright Act our contact information has been registered with the United States Copyright Office. "Safe Harbor" noticing procedures as outlined in the DMCA apply to this website concerning all 3rd party posts published herein.
If notice is given of an alleged copyright violation we will act expeditiously to remove or disable access to the material(s) in question. It is our strict policy to disable access to accounts of repeat copyright violators. We will also ban the IP address of repeat offenders from future posting on this website with or without a registered account.
All 3rd party material posted on this website is copyright the respective owners / authors. Atomicbobs.com makes no claim of copyright on such material.
Please be aware any communications sent complaining about a post on this website may be posted publicly at the discretion of the administration.
---
DON'T BREAK THE LAW!
---
Other than that you can do / say whatever you want on this forum.
We reserve the right to block access to this website by any individual or organization at any time for any reason whatsoever or no reason at all.