Gold prices hit new high, receiving further support from US economic data

Neils Christensen, an analyst at Kitco News, said the gold market continued to rally, breaking new records, even as the US housing sector showed signs of stabilization.

Housing starts fell 0.5% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.354 million units, down from August's 1.36 million unit rate, the Commerce Department said Friday. The data was roughly in line with expectations.

For the year, the report showed that the pace of US home building fell 0.7% from the September 2023 estimate.

The gold market continues to see strong buying momentum. December gold futures last traded at $2,730.20 an ounce, up nearly 1% on the day.

While home construction appears to be stabilizing, the U.S. housing sector remains weak as new building permits continue to decline, the expert said.

The report also noted that future housing permits fell 2.9% to a rate of 1.428 million in September, down from a revised 1.47 million in August. However, the decline was in line with economists' expectations.

For the year, the number of building permits issued fell 5.7% from September 2023. According to some market analysts, the housing data will continue to support the strong uptrend of gold as it shows that economic activity is slowing.