Gold down, with hopes up for Trump’s COVID-19 recovery

NEW YORK: Gold was down on Monday morning in Asia, with investors retreating from the safe-haven asset over news that U.S. President Donald Trump could soon be discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he is being treated for COVID-19.
Gold futures were down 0.47% to $1,898.70 by 12:16 AM ET (4:16 AM GMT), falling just below the $1,900-mark. The yellow metal had looked set for its biggest weekly percentage rise since early August on Friday in the wake of Trump and his wife Melania Trump testing positive for the virus.
Question marks remain over Trump’s health after his medical team sent confusing and contradictory updates over the weekend. But the team’s latest statement, released on Sunday, said that Trump is recovering and could be discharged as early as Monday.
The Trumps join the ever-increasing number of COVID-19 cases globally, which has topped the 35 million-mark as of Oct.5, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
With the Nov. 3 presidential election less than a month away, investors will be looking to vice presidential nominees Mike Pence and Kamala Harris’ debate on Wednesday, and to whether the U.S. Congress will reach consensus on the latest stimulus measures ahead of the election.
Investors will also be monitoring remarks from U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at the NABE conference on Tuesday, with the Fed releasing the minutes from its September meeting the day after.
European Central Bank (ECB) chief economist Philip Lane will also deliver a keynote address at the conference alongside Powell, and the ECB will also release minutes from its September meeting. In the Asia-Pacific region, the Reserve Bank of Australia is widely expected to keep interest rates and its three-year yield target unchanged at 0.25% when it meets on Tuesday.