Gold rebounds 0.8% to $3,903.90 an ounce after sharp Friday fall
Key Facts
Spot gold rose 0.8% to $3,903.90 an ounce by 0757 GMT on Nov. 2, while U.S. December futures gained 0.4% to $3,913.20, according to Reuters. The gains followed a sharp drop in the previous session but left the metal below the $4,000 level it broke through on Friday. Gold fell 3.5% that day to its lowest level since October 2025. EL7 data showed it closed at $3,875.645 on Oct. 30, before closing at $3,900.75 on Nov. 2. The rebound reflects a partial recovery after the selloff, as oil moves intersect with interest rate expectations.
Pressure on gold on Friday coincided with a selloff in technology stocks that triggered margin calls and sales of safe-haven assets, including the precious metal, Reuters reported. This highlights that the decline was not limited to a repricing of rate expectations, but also involved forced sales of assets investors held as a hedge. After falling below $4,000 an ounce, gold hit its lowest level since October 2025, the report said. Prices then moved higher at the start of the week, but spot gold remained at $3,903.90 in early trading. Kyle Rodda, an analyst at Capital.com, said, "What we're seeing is just a rebound after the selloff, alongside a drop in oil prices at the start of the week."
Oil prices fell more than 3% on Nov. 2 after Iranian negotiators and Qatari mediators held talks in Doha for a third consecutive day. The talks aim to advance an agreement to end the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, Reuters reported. The drop in oil offered some relief to precious metals at the start of the week, as Rodda explained in his assessment of gold's movement. Energy matters to the metal because of its potential impact on inflation and monetary policy expectations. Higher energy prices often bolster expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates elevated for longer, increasing the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding gold, Reuters said.
On Oct. 28, the Federal Reserve kept its target rate range at 3.75% to 4.00%, in a decision approved by a 10-to-2 vote. The two dissenters, Lisa Cook and Beth Hammack, preferred a quarter-percentage-point increase, while the central bank said economic activity was expanding at a solid pace and inflation remained elevated. Three Fed officials also called for further increases on Friday, according to a correction to information about their positions. These signals reflect continued debate within the central bank over inflation and the rate path, despite the range being held at the latest meeting. In markets, the probability of a December rate hike was priced at about 73% on Nov. 2, according to the CME FedWatch tool, as reported by Reuters.
The data calendar points to the U.S. October jobs report on Nov. 6 at 08:30 a.m. Eastern Time, followed by the consumer price index for the same month on Nov. 10 at 08:30 a.m. The minutes of the Fed's Oct. 27-28 meeting will be released on Nov. 18, while the Beige Book is due on Nov. 25. The official release date for October's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) data is Dec. 1 at 10:00 a.m., according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; it is not Nov. 3, as stated in the first draft. The Fed meets on Dec. 8 and 9, according to the Federal Open Market Committee calendar. These dates place labor market and inflation data, along with the meeting minutes, ahead of the decision scheduled for December, as markets continue to price the odds of the next move.