Gold is soaring, set for the biggest monthly gain in almost two years after the partial U.S. government shutdown and concerns about the 2019 economic outlook stoked demand for the metal as a haven.
Gold futures touched a six-month high as U.S. stocks remain volatile and the shutdown in Washington enters its fifth day amid no signs of progress to resolve the dispute over funding for a wall on the southern border. That’s helped to push money managers to their most bullish position on gold in half a year, while holdings in exchange-traded funds backed by bullion rise.
“New money is coming into the gold market as a result of the shutdown, propelling the move higher ,” Phil Streible, a senior market strategist at RJO Futures, said by phone from Chicago. “The path of least resistance is up.”
Gold futures for February delivery rose 0.1 percent to settle at $1,273 an ounce at 1:30 p.m. on the Comex in New York. The metal is up more than 3.8 percent in December, on course for the biggest monthly advance since January 2017.