Gold Is Trailing Other Commodities. What It Would Take for Prices to Push Higher.

Gold Is Trailing Other Commodities. What It Would Take for Prices to Push Higher.

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After suffering its biggest quarterly loss since 2016, gold stands as one of the few commodities trading lower this year. But prices still have room to run higher even if the global economy continues to recover and the pandemic moves closer to an end.

"Gold has played its typical role as an insurance against market disruption and as a haven asset,“ says Frederic Panizzutti, head of institutional and central bank sales at precious metals trader and refiner MKS.

"In the course of the last year, markets had little visibility“ around the Covid-19 crisis, and didn't know when a vaccine would become available or how long lockdowns or trans-border travel restrictions would last, he says. "In the context of uncertainties, the market needed some sort of financial anchor, a safe haven“”and gold seemed to be the answer.“

Gold futures gained nearly 25% in 2020, their largest yearly climb in a decade. So far this year, the metal trades around 8% lower, after losing 9.5% in the first quarter, bucking an overall up trend for commoditiesprices.

The metal was available, but "not at the right place at the right time, and premiums climbed in some parts of the world“ as investors were looking for the