Stocks Set to Pull Back as Gold Powers On – Europe Market Wrap
US stocks are set to pull back from all-time highs as traders search for new catalysts to drive markets at the start of a relatively quiet week on the event calendar. Gold hit a fresh record.
Futures for the S&P 500 slipped 0.2% after interest-rate cut optimism pushed the benchmark to a fresh high at the end of last week. Cryptocurrencies sank as traders saw more than $1.5 billion in leveraged long positions liquidated.
After the Federal Reserve cut rates for the first time this year, this week’s data calendar looks thin, with Friday’s release of policymakers’ preferred gauge of underlying inflation the main item. With the central bank’s dovish stance largely shaped by a weakening labor market, next week’s payrolls report looms as the bigger catalyst, alongside the start of the earnings season next month.
Gold powered past $3,700 an ounce as ETF inflows hit a three-year high. Silver rose to the highest since 2011. With lower rates typically boosting non-interest bearing precious metals, market bets for almost two more cuts this year – alongside haven demand from geopolitical risks and trade tensions – have fueled a rally of more than 40% in bullion for 2025.
