Gold maintained its upward momentum on Friday, closing at $2,747.22, marking its third consecutive weekly gain despite concurrent strength in both Treasury yields and the U.S. dollar. The precious metal shows remarkable strength after reaching a record high of $2,758.53 earlier this week, breaking typical market correlation patterns with yields and the dollar. Traders should watch weekend geopolitical developments for Monday’s opening direction.
Treasury yields advanced with the benchmark 10-year reaching 4.24%, extending from Wednesday’s three-month peak. While this movement typically pressures gold prices, Middle East tensions and U.S. election uncertainty have reinforced gold’s safe-haven appeal, driving its 32% gain year-to-date. Key resistance sits at 4.30% – a break above could trigger fresh market volatility.
The dollar index strengthened to 104.24, locking in its fourth consecutive week of gains. Strong economic indicators, including better-than-expected business spending data and improved consumer sentiment readings, have reduced expectations for aggressive Federal Reserve rate cuts. Watch for early Asian trading patterns Sunday night as Japanese election results emerge.
Market positioning now shows a 95.6% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut at the Federal Reserve’s November meeting, markedly down from previous expectations of larger cuts. Fed officials maintain a cautious stance, with Cleveland Fed’s Hammack stating clearly that the inflation battle remains ongoing. Next week’s payroll numbers could reshape these expectations entirely.
The short-term outlook for gold remains bullish despite opposing market forces. The rare combination of rising yields, dollar strength, and climbing gold prices indicates that safe-haven buying overshadows traditional market relationships. Support holds at $2,708.76, with resistance at $2,758.53 becoming the next key target. Critical factors to monitor include:
James is a Florida-based technical analyst, market researcher, educator and trader with 35+ years of experience. He is an expert in the area of patterns, price and time analysis as it applies to futures, Forex, and stocks.