Gold has edged higher in the Wednesday session, continuing the trend seen on Tuesday. In North American trade, the spot price for one ounce of gold is $1313.54, up 0.20% on the day. In the U.S., CPI ticked up to 0.0%, shy of the estimate of 0.1%. Core CPI posted a gain of 0.2%, matching the estimate. On Thursday, the U.S. publishes retail sales and PPI.
Gold often loses ground when investor optimism rises, but that hasn’t been the case this week. Risk appetite has improved, courtesy of positive news on two fronts. Domestically, lawmakers have tentatively agreed on a proposal which will avert another government shutdown, which would take effect on Friday. However, the deal needs to be approved by Congress and President Trump. The agreement does not provide Trump will funding for a border wall, and the deadlock between Congress and Trump over this issue triggered a government shutdown in January which lasted 35 days. Both sides are eager to avoid blame for a second shutdown, and Trump hinted earlier in the week that he would go along with the deal, albeit with reservations.
On the trade front, U.S. and Chinese officials are meeting for a third round of talks in Beijing. Investors have been frustrated by the lack of progress, but were relieved when Trump said that he could postpone a March 1 deadline for new tariffs on Chinese imports if the trade talks made sufficient progress. The U.S-China trade spat has rocked global equity markets and hurt global growth, which has boosted gold above the $1300 level. The metal vaulted 7.9% in the December-January period, but has settled down in February.
