The gold price rose above the $ 1,800 mark early Monday morning and can thus for the first time again gain strength. The worries about Omicron and rapidly rising inflation support safe-haven assets at the moment.
- Gold futures were up 0.4% at $1,804.90 per ounce.
- Silver futures contracts remained stable at $22.47 per ounce
- Platinum futures were up 0.5% at $940.71 per ounce.
- Palladium futures were up 3.1% at $1,782.99 an ounce.
While stock markets around the world fell, central banks around the world tended to contain rising inflation and economic risks.
The U.S. Federal Reserve announced this week that it would be tapering its QE program more quickly than previously planned. It will now tap $30 billion per month. In addition, there will be up to three rate hikes next year, economic factors permitting. Already, this sounds much more aggressive than previous Fed meetings. The rapid rise in inflation seems to be starting to be a concern, especially when you look at the PPI numbers of almost 8%, which show what’s waiting down the road.
The ECB, on the other hand, continues to sound rather weak. Although it now wants to phase out the PEPP program next year, no one really wants to touch on interest rates. Meanwhile, inflation in Europe continues to rise to historic levels. The consumer price index in Germany has risen by 19.2%.