After a big week last week with the UK election and US non-farm payroll data released, this week also has a number of key events and releases that will influence the direction of gold, particularly mid-week.

The US non-farm payroll data out last week come in below expectations, as has been the trend for a lot of the macro economic data coming out of the US in recent months. The ongoing flow of weak data has given gold demand a boost. As we have been saying for a while now, the Fed cannot and should not be thinking about raising rates any time soon. We predict that the Fed will not move on rates until 2016 given the weakness in the US economy.

This week the key data and events come from all points of the globe.

Monday sees the Bank of England policy decision, it was held back due to the UK election last week, rates are expected to remain on hold at 0.5%. The Eurogroup meets Monday with Germany stating in recent days that they do not see a deal on Greek debt being done and warning of a Greek default. Concerns over Greece and the Eurozone may be back in the headlines this week.

Tuesday will see the Australian Federal Budget released. Gold investors should keep watch on the AUD and gold priced in AUD. I do not expect the AUD to react significantly upon its release given most of the data will be selectively released before it is handed down, however watch for any surprises. Also out Tuesday is UK Industrial Production numbers for March.

Wednesday is a big day with the Bank of England Inflation Report, UK Unemployment Rate, Chinese Retails Sales and Industrial Production, German GDP (Q1) and US Retail Sales Data. US Retail Sales are expected to increase by 1.3% which is lower than the previous reading which was 1.5%.

Thursday has the US Jobless Claims.

Friday will see the release of the University of Michigan Consumer Confidence report with the reading expected to improve from 95.9 to 96.4, showing an increase in sentiment.

This week I expect to see gold test the US$1,200/oz resistance level, while if gold does turn lower it could test the support at US$1,173/oz. We are already seeing in early Asian trade that gold is pushing higher towards US$1,190/oz.

Courtesy of: www.BullionIndex.com.au

Harley Salt is co-founder of www.BullionIndex.com.au a physical gold, silver and platinum trading and investing company located in Melbourne, Australia.

Bullion Index offers direct market access to 15 global physical bullion exchanges and storage facilities in key locations including London, Zurich, New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai and Sydney. Their clients from across the globe can trade bullion bars and investment grade coins simply and securely via the MetalDesk online trading platform.

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

Only logged in users are allowed to post comments. Register/ Log in

The Market Oracle is a FREE Financial Markets Forecasting & Analysis web-site.
(c) 2005-2024 MarketOracle.co.uk (Market Oracle Ltd) - Market Oracle Ltd asserts copyright on all articles authored by our editorial team and all comments posted. Any and all information provided within the web-site, is for general information purposes only and Market Oracle Ltd do not warrant the accuracy, timeliness or suitability of any information provided on this site. nor is or shall be deemed to constitute, financial or any other advice or recommendation by us. and are also not meant to be investment advice or solicitation or recommendation to establish market positions. We do not give investment advice and our comments are an expression of opinion only and should not be construed in any manner whatsoever as recommendations to enter into a market position either stock, option, futures contract, bonds, commodity or any other financial instrument at any time. We recommend that independent professional advice is obtained before you make any investment or trading decisions. By using this site you agree to this sites Terms of Use. From time to time we promote or endorse certain products / services that we believe are worthy of your time and attention. In return for that endorsement and only in the cases where you purchase directly though us may we be compensated by the producers of those products.