Gold pushes higher on Russia’s announcement of ‘no breakthrough’ on ceasefire
Franklin Templeton says gold outperforming other ‘perceived safe-haven assets’

(USAGOLD –3/30/2022) – Gold pushed higher this morning as Russia announced “no breakthrough” in ceasefire talks and markets nervously awaited tomorrow’s PCE Inflation Index number. It is up $10 at $1932. Silver is up 20¢ at $25.05. A weaker dollar, particularly against the Japanese yen, is offering an assist in early US trading. Franklin Templeton research analyst Steve Land sees strong safe-haven gold coin and bullion demand as a key factor in assessing the metal’s future prospects.

“Gold has outperformed other perceived haven assets in February and March,” he says in a report posted yesterday at Seeking Alpha, “including US Treasuries (as heightened inflation diminished the appeal of bonds), the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc.…[P]remiums above spot prices have increased in several markets, reflecting a shortage of available physical supply relative to the demand. Gold has been performing well, but we still see a number of potential drivers that could move the metal even higher. In our view, gold may benefit from additional bouts of elevated market volatility and lingering concerns over the coronavirus’s economic impact. The Russia-Ukraine war has added further uncertainty to the global economy. A classic feature of gold is its very low correlation with other asset classes, supporting increased interest in owning it as a portfolio diversification tool in volatile markets.”

Gold price in Japanese yen, Swiss franc and US dollar
(One year, % gain)

Chart courtesy of TradingView.com

Editor’s note: Premiums in the silver market reflect an even greater imbalance between physical supply and demand than what we are seeing in gold. The chart illustrates gold’s largely overlooked performance against the three so-called safe haven currencies over the past 12 months – the US dollar (green), Japanese yen (red) and Swiss franc (black).