- Spot Gold bids set a new record high on Wednesday.
- XAU/USD touches $2,150 as markets devour Fed Chair Powell’s words.
- Fed’s Powell sees no recession, qualifies inflation outlook.
Spot Gold prices are pushing deeply into bullish territory on Wednesday, with XAU/USD setting a tentative all-time high at $2,150.00. Markets are bidding up Gold following the first of a two-day appearance from Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell.
Jerome Powell Speech: Fed Chair doesn’t see elevated risk of recession
Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted on Wednesday that the Fed doesn’t see any imminent risk of a US recession. The Fed head also clarified the US central bank’s outlook on inflation, tipping the hat to investors hoping for rate cuts. Fed Chair Powell noted that progress on inflation is ongoing, and while the Fed is waiting for more evidence that inflation will reach 2%, US policymakers are looking for more of what they’ve already seen, not necessarily better overall inflation readings.
Markets took the opportunity to bid Spot Gold into record prices on Fed headlines, and February’s miss in ADP Employment Change is helping to bolster market hopes for easing economic conditions in the US.
ADP Employment Change in February came in at 140K versus the 150K forecast, while the previous month’s print saw a revision to 111K from 107K. US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) still loom ahead on Friday, and markets are expecting the headline print to ease back to 200K from last month’s 11-month high of 353K.
With XAU/USD trading into all-time highs, technical barriers are difficult to draw into the charts, though intraday price action is seeing some hesitation at $2,150.00, a level that saw a sharp rejection recently. Spot Gold has traded on the bullish side since crossing above the 200-hour Simple Moving Average (SMA) in mid-February near $2,015.00.
XAU/USD caught several bounces from the 200-hour SMA near $2,030.00, and the key technical barrier is rising towards $2,070.00 as the closest near-term price floor for any bearish pullbacks.
Spot Gold prices are on pace to close bullish for a sixth consecutive day, and XAU/USD has closed in the green or close to flat for all but two of the last fourteen trading days straight.