Gold Rises As Yields Retreat On Growth Concerns

Gold prices rose on Monday as the real yield on U.S. 10-year debt fell to a record low on global growth concerns.

Spot gold rose 0.4 percent to $1,808.80 per ounce, while U.S. gold futures were up 0.4 percent at $1,808.45.

Yields on government bonds are falling on concerns that the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus could dent global growth.

A survey showed German business confidence weakened unexpectedly in July as managers’ optimism was clouded by problems with the supply of raw materials and other products and by an upturn in coronavirus infections.

The dollar held firm as China’s crackdown on private tutoring companies and growing trade tensions between Washington and Beijing dampened investors’ appetite for riskier assets.

Chinese authorities introduced a new set of sweeping regulations on private educators, which includes prohibiting tutoring for profit in core school subjects to reduce financial pressures on families.

The policy change also restricts foreign investment in the sector through mergers and acquisitions, franchises, or variable interest entity (VIEs) arrangements.

China’s antitrust regulator ordered Tencent to end its exclusive music licensing rights, a step aimed at tackling the company’s dominance of online music streaming in the country.

U.S.-China tensions intensified after Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng said that the relationship between the world’s two largest economies “is now in a stalemate and faces serious difficulties.”

Looking ahead, U.S. new home sales for June will be published in the New York session. The dollar could rise if the Federal Reserve signals that its bond buying program won’t continue for much longer in a policy decision Wednesday.

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