Gold and silver prices are moderately higher in early U.S. trading Thursday, on a corrective rebound from selling pressure Wednesday. Trading has been choppy and sideways in gold and silver the past week, as traders await a fresh fundamental spark to break prices out of their near-term trading ranges. That spark could come with Friday’s U.S. monthly jobs report. A weaker U.S. dollar index and a dip in U.S. Treasury yields today are also working in favor of the gold and silver markets bulls. August gold was last up $51.60 at $4,519.00. July silver prices were up $0.526 at $74.24.
In overnight news, Latest on U.S.-Iran war…
-- Israel, Lebanon agree to ceasefire
-- Iran says no progress in U.S. talks as Lebanon sees more clashes
-- Crude oil dips after Israel-Lebanon ceasefire even as clashes persist
-- Republican-led U.S. House votes to stop Iran war, rebuking Trump
-- Trump downplays threats of Hormuz mines, touts alternate route
Iran said there had been no recent progress in talks with the U.S. over an interim peace deal, while fighting persisted in Lebanon despite Washington’s declaration of a ceasefire between Israel and the country. The U.S. and Iran are struggling to finalize the details of a deal that is meant to see the sides extend their truce by two months and Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial ships. Clashes continued in southern Lebanon overnight, with no reports of Hezbollah attacks into northern Israel since the ceasefire announcement, and no immediate indication whether Hezbollah had accepted the agreement. Still, both Iran and the U.S. broadly say the talks are ongoing and signal they want to reach a deal, which would lead to more and complicated discussions on Tehran’s nuclear program.
Challenger reports U.S. job cuts, due to artificial intelligence. U.S.-based employers announced 97,006 job cuts in May, the most since January, compared to 83,387 in April, according to this morning’s Challenger job-cuts report. It is the highest May total since 2020 and also marks the third straight month that cuts have risen. AI was the main reason for the cuts, leading for a third straight month. Technology announced 38,242 job cuts in May, the highest monthly total for the sector since August 2024. Transportation (6,909), services (6,288) and fintech (5,731) followed. “On top of the headline AI story, we’re seeing a sharp rise in cuts tied to acquisitions and mergers and a jump in bankruptcy-related losses, which tells me companies are restructuring aggressively as they reposition for an AI-driven economy,” said Andy Challenger from Challenger, Gray & Christmas. TradingEconomics.com
Asian countries bolstering their currency defenses. Asian authorities are ramping up their currency defenses as high energy costs and bets that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates pressure them. Authorities in countries such as South Korea, Indonesia and Japan are intensifying interventions to stabilize their currencies, which have dropped to record or near-record lows. “Regional central banks and authorities are on high alert due to tough and fast-market conditions, with a strong U.S. dollar and elevated oil prices pressuring regional foreign exchange,” said a Bloomberg report. The South Korean won fell to the lowest since 2009 even as the government pledged to curb excessive volatility, underscoring the pressure some Asian currencies face as the Iran war drags on.
The key outside markets today see the U.S. dollar index weaker, while Nymex WTI crude oil prices are weaker and trading around $95.00 a barrel. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield is presently 4.48%.
Technically, August gold futures prices are trending down on the daily bar chart. Bulls’ next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at the May high of $4,819.00. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at $4,250.00. First resistance is seen at Wednesday’s high of $4,525.10 and then at this week’s high of $4,577.30. First support is seen at the overnight low of $4,450.10 and then at the May low of $4,395.60. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 4.0
July silver futures bulls see their next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the May high of $90.105. The next downside price objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $70.00. First resistance is seen at this week’s high of $77.355 and then at last week’s high of $79.25. Next support is seen at the May low of $72.00 and then at $70.00. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 5.0
