On Friday night, spot gold stood at $1,890 an ounce, extending its daily gain to 1% at $1,894.9 an ounce. Spot silver was up as much as 2% at $24.73. The U.S. dollar index was more than 10 points lower in the short term, now at 92.83. Silver futures on the COMEX rose sharply, up 2.04% at one point during the day.
While Monday’s news of the Pfizer vaccine boosted market risk sentiment, risk appetite has declined as the neo-crown epidemic rages in the U.S. and Europe.
Yields on U.S. Treasuries and notes have fallen after rising to eight-month highs earlier this week, and 10-year U.S. Treasury futures are now trading at 0.88% after approaching 1.0% this week.
Data show that in the past two weeks, 13 states in the U.S. new coronary diagnoses surged by more than 100 percent; as of early November, the U.S. new confirmed new coronary cases increased at a rate of more than 125,000 per day, six times the rate in June. Investors expect governments and central banks in major economies to introduce more stimulus measures.
Amid the worsening epidemic, some high-frequency indicators show that the U.S. economy is also suffering again. According to OpenTable here, U.S. restaurant dining reservations have fallen for four consecutive weeks. Employment at some small businesses also fell steadily for a month, according to data from time management firm Homebase joinhomebase.
Investor concerns about a surge in new crown cases are gradually offsetting the optimism generated by the improving vaccine outlook. Both the Federal Reserve chairman and the European Central Bank president hinted Friday morning that the economic outlook is still uncertain.
Even Goldman Sachs, which has been bullish on a sustained economic recovery, has become cautious. Goldman Sachs analyst David Choi warned that, given the upcoming holiday season and winter, the already record-breaking number of infections may still be in the early stages.
David Choi also said that the new wave of epidemics in the United States is still in its early stages, and he expects the overall spread to be much worse than in the summer. Although data suggest that voluntary consumer behavior has not been as strong in response to the recent epidemic rebound, that could change if the number of cases, hospital admissions and deaths increase and the potential risk increases.
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