During July 2018, precious metals saw significant losses. Gold, for example, took a long, slow drop through the month of July, starting at $1,250 per ounce and reaching $1,220 early on the 31st. Those numbers aren’t ideal, of course. Still, the weakening dollar played a part in moderating the drop. While gold remains bearish, investors are watchful for signs of increasing geopolitical unrest that could decrease the value of the U.S. dollar and increase the value of gold and other precious metals.
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As for silver, the white metal dropped from $16.000 at the beginning of July to $15.250 on the 19th. Since then, silver has made a slight correction, landing at $15.395 on the last day of the month. The increase bodes well for investors who are anxious to build their silver holdings.
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Although platinum prices have ranged from $805 to $850 during July, the net gain was only $9 between the $818 at the first of the month to the $827 on the last day of July. The good news is that a net gain in the current climate suggests platinum is strong in the long term.
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From its start at $950 at July’s beginning, Palladium took a dive, landing at $890 on July 23rd. By the end of the month, though, Palladium was headed back, with a spot price of $922 on the 31st. If the current trend continues, palladium could be back at early July’s levels and above very soon.
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The bright spot in the mining sector is substantial gains in silver mining. Several major silver producers did very well in the second quarter, bringing more silver into the market for those seeking to add silver to their precious metals portfolios.
With the upcoming meeting of the FOMC, experts are waiting to find out if the Fed will continue its hawkish stance with a new interest rate hike. If they do, the dollar could regain strength. Meanwhile, tech stocks like Facebook and Netflix have performed less brilliantly than expected, leaving room for hope in a precious metals rally in the near future. Selling in the stock market sector has already started. If it continues, the expected result would be gains in the precious metals market.
Precious metals advisors are suggesting a short or neutral position for gold investing. Although the liquidity of gold is generally beneficial, investors would do best to stand by, watch, and observe all the economic news coming out in the next month before selling off significant amounts of precious metals.
Despite the current bearish situation for gold, those who take the long view understand that precious metals tend to come back over and over through the course of history. It’s true that the precious metals market in general is in a sideways or downward pattern right now. Yet, the intrinsic value of gold, silver, platinum and palladium isn’t going away any time soon. In fact, if the tech stocks continue to decline and the dollar continues to weaken, the path to higher gold prices may be clearer than ever.