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Weak dollar, gold up nearly 1%

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent offered support for Jerome Powell amid regular attacks from President Donald Trump, saying he sees no reason for the Federal Reserve chair to step down. Trump has maintained his criticism of the Fed chief and stressed his belief that the central bank’s benchmark rate should be 3 percentage points lower.  

Political interference and a potential attempt to oust of Powell before his term ends is throwing the Fed’s independence into question. That’s negative for the dollar, and is helping boost haven demand for gold. 

“The USD is losing its store of value function” and bullion is exceptionally well-placed to benefit, TD Securities senior commodity strategist Dan Ghali said in a note.  

Spot gold was up nearly 1% to $3,430.05 an ounce at 2:16 p.m. in New York. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.4%. Silver and palladium advanced while platinum slipped.

Source – Bloomberg

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