Gold Prices Conflicted by 'Thin Markets And Fed Blabber'

KITCO NEWS - Gold is conflicted by the ongoing dialogue surrounding the next increase in Fed rates, said Peter Hug, global trading director for bullion dealer, Kitco Metals. 'We continue to remain steadfast in our view that the Fed remains on hold in September and trading gold on the short side, on the basis of December being the target date for a move, is much too premature,' Hug said in an interview Monday. 'That said, we are still in a very thin market, but expect the range to be $1,328 - $1,355 to continue ahead of Yellen's speech on Friday,' he added. Fed Chair Janet Yellen is expected to give an upbeat report on the U.S. economy later this week. It is highly expected that if the jobs report on September 2 shows a continued strong number, that even a September rate hike may be on the table. Gold prices ended the U.S. day session weaker but up from the daily low that marked a two-week low Monday. December Comex gold settled lower at $1,343.40 an ounce. September Comex silver was also down $0.432 at $18.88 an ounce.

This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held TK positions in the stocks mentioned.