US shutdown fears weakened the dollar, boosting gold to over $5100.

CWG Markets

On Monday, the US dollar continued to weaken after falling to a four month low against a basket of currencies, while the Japanese yen rose sharply due to market speculation about a joint intervention by the US and Japan in the foreign exchange market. The US dollar index ultimately closed down 0.436% at 97.04; The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield fell, ultimately closing at 4.2180%, while the 2-year Treasury yield sensitive to the Federal Reserve policy rate closed at 3.598%.

On Monday (January 26th), it briefly surged to a record high of $5110.86 per ounce during trading. Although most of the gains were taken in profit taking at the end of the day, buying near the $5000 mark remained strong. On Tuesday morning, gold prices fluctuated and rose again, rising more than 1% at one point and breaking through $5060. Due to the improved supply prospects of OPEC+member Kazakhstan, concerns about the impact of winter storms on large areas of the United States due to snowfall and freezing weather have been masked, leading to a slight drop in oil prices. WTI crude oil closed down 0.78% at $60.92 per barrel; Brent crude oil closed down 0.69% at $64.84 per barrel.

Due to severe cold weather in many parts of the United States, there has been a surge in heating demand and supply disruptions. As a result, natural gas prices in the United States have exceeded $7 per million British thermal units for the first time since 2022, up 40% from last Friday's closing price. Prices in cold regions have also surpassed $200 per million British thermal units.