Gold prices opened 2026 in record highs, closing the last session of the week slightly up even though the USD and US Treasury bond yields both went up, according to Reuters.
Spot gold rose 0.36% to $4,329.57/ounce, while the USD Index rose 0.19%. The 10-year US Treasury bond yield also edged up by 3.8 basis points, to 4.191%.
This volatile development is particularly noteworthy because the upward momentum of gold in the past time is closely linked to investors' expectations of the US interest rate roadmap. When interest rates fall, the opportunity cost of holding gold – a non-profit asset – will be lower, thereby supporting the price of precious metals.
On the futures market, Comex gold futures for February delivery fell 0.3%, closing at 4,329.6 USD/ounce, although earlier in the session it jumped to 4,402.06 USD/ounce, Reuters reported.
Mr. Bart Melek, Head of Global Commodity Strategy at TD Securities, commented: "Speculations about interest rate cuts right from March, along with the US public debt burden, are continuing to push gold prices up.
Reuters also said that geopolitical tensions continue to play a supporting role for the gold market. Meanwhile, analyst Jim Wyckoff of Kitco Metals assessed that the technical resistance zone of gold contracts is near a record high of about 4,584 USD/ounce.
The positive developments of gold are also clearly reflected in the ETF fund market. SPDR Gold Shares fund increased by 0.5% to $398.28 in the last session of the week, while VanEck Gold Miners ETF almost went sideways at $85.73.
In the mining stock group, Newmont rose 1.4%, while Agnico Eagle edged up 0.5%, according to market data.
A legal file shows that Ms. Jennifer Cmil, Executive Vice President and Human Resources Director of Newmont, sold 609 shares on December 30 to serve salary tax deduction obligations. The file affirms that this is not a proactive sales transaction.
Cash flow into gold-related investment products continues to be positive. According to LSEG Lipper data cited by Reuters, commodity funds focused on gold and precious metals have net attracted about 2.03 billion USD in the most recent week, marking the eighth consecutive week of cash flow inflows.
On the currency market, the USD started 2026 with a stronger trend after experiencing its sharpest decline in eight years last year. This development has increased the cost of buying gold in domestic currency for non-US investors.
Investors are currently waiting for a series of US economic data to be released late due to the impact of the federal government shutdown, in order to further refine expectations about the timing and scale of interest rate cuts this year, Reuters reported.
