Gold Closes at $4,113.5 as Rebound Extends About 7% Since October Low
Key Facts
EL7 data showed GCUSD’s daily close at $4,113.5 on November 5, 2026, while FXStreet described spot gold as rebounding about 7% from a low near $3,870 on October 30 to about $4,150 on November 5. FXStreet said the metal had recovered about $280 an ounce over that period, a rebound that took prices back above $4,000. EL7’s figure refers to the GCUSD close, while FXStreet’s figure describes the spot gold level; they are different readings of the market. The move followed a late-October decline, putting the price recovery at the forefront of trading as U.S. jobs data approached. Investors were awaiting the report, due the next day, for clues that could affect monetary policy bets.
The close followed a daily gain of 3.4% on November 4, gold’s strongest daily advance since August, according to FXStreet. The report attributed the move to a weaker dollar after Democrats won both chambers of Congress, along with a decline in U.S. Treasury yields. FXStreet said gold and silver together added $1 trillion to their market value after the U.S. midterm election results, citing data from GSC Commodity Intelligence. Against the backdrop of the dollar’s move, net speculative long positions in the dollar across eight currency futures contracts stood at $38.1 billion on October 27, after recently exceeding a peak of $44 billion, according to the same data cited by FXStreet. These figures link gold’s rise to market moves in the dollar and yields, as well as an expansion in metals’ market value following the election result.
The World Gold Council’s report showed total gold demand, including over-the-counter trading, at 1,369 tonnes in the third quarter of 2026, down 1% year on year. But demand from the start of the year through the end of the third quarter reached 3,881 tonnes, nearing the annual record of 3,884 tonnes set in 2025. The average gold price under the LBMA PM benchmark was about $4,262 an ounce in the third quarter, up 23% from the same period a year earlier and the third-highest quarterly average on record. The contrast between a slight decline in demand volume and a higher price shows how strongly gold’s value moved as prices rose. The council also reported that strong demand was not limited to investors; jewelry purchases declined as prices remained high.
Net purchases by central banks and other official institutions totaled 321 tonnes in the third quarter, up 42% from a year earlier and the highest quarterly total since the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the World Gold Council. Purchases by these institutions from the start of 2026 through the end of the third quarter rose to 675 tonnes, up 6% from the corresponding period of 2025. Physically backed gold exchange-traded funds recorded inflows of 211 tonnes in the third quarter, lifting holdings to a record 4,256 tonnes. The funds’ quarterly inflows reached a record value of $31 billion. These official purchases and fund flows provide one part of the investment demand that coincided with the price rebound, while jewelry demand remained under pressure from high prices.
In China, demand for gold bars and coins rose 7% year on year to 79 tonnes in the third quarter, according to the World Gold Council. Demand for these products since the start of the year reached 393 tonnes, a record level 11% above the previous record of 353 tonnes set in 2013. By contrast, global jewelry demand fell 17% annually to 313 tonnes in the third quarter, its weakest level for that quarter in the council’s data series. The council said high prices continued to weigh on jewelry buying. The figures show investment demand expanding in some markets alongside a decline in jewelry-related consumption as prices rose.
In the U.S. labor market, the Associated Press reported that initial jobless claims totaled 189,000 in the latest week, compared with 195,000 the previous week, while the four-week average fell to 194,750. Claims had remained below 230,000 every week since the start of 2026 and had been at 200,000 or lower for eight consecutive weeks, the agency said. Employers added an average of 68,000 jobs a month since the start of the year, including 29,000 jobs in the previous month, according to an Associated Press report published on November 5. The agency cited a FactSet survey showing economists expected 65,000 jobs to be added in the October report and unemployment to remain at 4.2%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics scheduled the release of its October report for November 6, 2026, at 08:30 a.m. Eastern Time, making employment data the next near-term focus for markets.
On demand, the World Gold Council expected demand for funds, bars and coins to remain resilient despite headwinds, and central-bank purchases in 2026 to be at least as high as in 2025 following the strength of the third quarter. The council said investment would remain the main source of annual demand growth, with investment demand in 2026 expected to exceed its 2025 level by about 200 tonnes. In its fourth-quarter outlook, it said higher interest rates and bond yields, along with a stronger dollar, could weigh on demand, while financial concerns, inflation risks, geopolitical tensions and market pressures could provide support. These competing factors coincided with investors awaiting U.S. jobs data due on November 6, while tracking its potential effect on interest-rate bets. Gold’s rebound from its late-October low remained the focus of trading as indicators of official and investment demand continued to flow in.