Gold and Silver Hold Steady Ahead of Fiscal Cliff

On Monday, gold (NYSEARCA:GLD) futures for December delivery remained unchanged to settle at $1,730.90 per ounce, while silver (NYSEARCA:SLV) edged 8 cents lower to close at $32.52.

Both precious metals were relatively quiet as trading volume was low amid Veteran’s Day and the closure of the bond market. The U.S. dollar index, which compares the greenback in a basket against six other fiat currencies, also traded flat.

Traders are bullish on gold, at least in the short-term. Twenty-five of 33 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expect prices to increase this week. Only three were bearish, and another five were neutral. This represents the highest proportion of bulls since August.

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Meanwhile, the market is still waiting on direction in regards to the much talked about fiscal cliff. Credit agency Standard & Poor’s recently said that the United States has a 15 percent chance of going over the fiscal cliff.

In afternoon trading, the SPDR Gold Trust (NYSEARCA:GLD) declined 0.25 percent, while the iShares Silver Trust (NYSEARCA:SLV) dipped 0.55 percent. Gold miners (NYSEARCA:GDX) such as Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM) and Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) both fell nearly 1 percent. Silver names such as Silver Wheaton (NYSE:SLW) and Endeavour Silver (NYSE:EXK) dropped 2.35 percent and 1.80 percent, respectively.

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Disclosure: Long EXK, AG, HL, PHYS