Gold Down, On Track for Biggest Annual Decline Since 2015

Gold was down on Thursday morning in Asia as investors continue to monitor the implication of the omicron COVID-19 variant and central banks’ withdrawal of monetary stimulus.

Gold futures edged down 0.15% to $1,803.15 by 10:18 PM ET (3:18 AM GMT). The dollar, which normally moves inversely to gold, inched down on Thursday, and benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yields steadied near a one-month high.

The yellow metal has fallen nearly 5% to date in 2021 and is expected to record its biggest annual decline since 2015. However, investors expect gold trading to remain thin and range-bound for the remainder of the year.

In Asia Pacific, data released earlier in the day showed that South Korean industrial production rose a better-than-expected 5.9% year-on-year in November. However, the data also showed that retail sales contracted by a larger-than-expected 1.9% month-on-month.

Asia Pacific stocks were mostly up on Thursday, despite a surge in omicron COVID-19 variant cases. Investors also continue to keep an eye on central banks’ withdrawal of monetary stimulus.

In China, the latest COVID-19 outbreak in the western city of Xi’an continues, with the country releasing its manufacturing and non-manufacturing purchasing managers indexes (PMI) on Friday.

In other precious metals, silver, platinum, and platinum all inched down 0.1%.