Gold Price Analysis: XAU/USD benefits from softening buck, lower US yields, eyes test of 200-DMA

• Gold is higher amid risk-off flows, a weaker buck and lower US yields.
• XAU/USD is eyeing a test of its 200-DMA around $1,837 once again.

Spot gold (XAU/USD) prices are trading around $1,830 per troy ounce and once again eyeing a test of the 200-Day Moving Average around $1,837, having gained around $15 (or around 0.8%) thus far on the session. Risk-off flows in the global equity space have continued on Thursday after Wall Street’s worst day in nearly two years on Wednesday as investors continue to fret about softening global growth expectations at a time when major central banks (namely the Fed and to a lesser extent the BoE and ECB) appear intent on aggressive monetary tightening.

That is a toxic combination for equities and investors have begun seeking out safety in traditional safe-haven assets such as US bonds, even though US bond valuations have been hit hard in recent months by the hawkish shift in the Fed’s stance. Either way, on Thursday US yields (nominal and real) are lower and this is dampening the appeal of the US dollar as a safe-haven currency, with the likes of the Swiss franc and yen performing better.

The combination of lower yields, which reduces the “opportunity cost” of holding non-yielding gold, and a weaker US dollar, which reduces the price of USD-denominated commodities like XAU/USD for foreign buyers, is having the dual effect of supporting gold on Thursday. But whether these trends will continue, and whether XAU/USD will be able to break above its 200-DMA and out of its recent bearish trend, remains to be seen.

In recent weeks, buying USD dips and selling gold rallies has been a highly profitable strategy. As long as markets continue to believe that the Fed will follow through with as much monetary tightening as it has been promising, gold’s chances of rebounding back to the, say, upper-$1,800s look limited. Looking to the immediate future, a few tier two US data releases on Thursday in the form of the May Philadelphia Manufacturing survey, the weekly initial jobless claims report and April Existing Home Sales probably won’t move markets much. But the data will likely keep focus on the overarching themes of slowing growth, inflation and central bank tightening.