April 12th Market Update
Gold Fluctuates to Start Week
Gold is up and down to start the week. The precious metal is dealing with high Treasury yields, which are pushing investors away from bullion. Gold hit $1,746.04 by 9 a.m. EDT. Silver, platinum and palladium all slipped to start the week.
U.S. producer prices reached a new milestone to end last week, hitting their highest annual gain in 9-1/2 years. That indicates inflation to come. The Fed has built a new system to allow inflation to go above the 2% Fed target for brief periods without intervention.
Losses from the Archegos hedge fund collapse are still coming in, but JPMorgan expects a $10 billion price tag.
China concluded antitrust proceedings against Alibaba, levying a $2.8 billion fine. The stock jumped in response, as even with the fine investors were happy to have some closure.
Fed chair Jerome Powell noted that the U.S. economy is at an “inflection point.” In a 60 Minutes interview, he mentioned new ventures like a digital dollar and pointed out strong growth and future hirings, but also talked about the challenges posed by COVID and the dangers of the dollar losing position as the world’s reserve currency.