Michelle ThompsonDue to Christmas, the search for direction continues, as trading volumes remain extremely low.
Due to the Christmas holiday, trading activity is projected to remain low during the week, and possible price changes may be in broader ranges due to shallow market conditions, according to analysts.
While many stock exchanges were closed on Monday, trade will resume on several, including the New York Stock Exchange, on Tuesday.
The possibility that the Fed would decrease interest rates in March, consistent with the bank’s goals for next year, is 85%, according to economists, however data due out this week may change this projection.
Analysts noted that dropping bond yields reduced the alternative cost of gold and increased demand for gold, noting that bond demand came to the fore as inflationary concerns faded.
In light of these developments, the US 10-year bond yield has returned to 3.88% in the final week of the year, after reaching a 16-year high of 5.02% earlier in the year.
The ounce price of gold is currently trading at $2,062, down from $2,053 last week.
On Tuesday, index futures contracts on the New York Stock Exchange are trading in a limited upward trend.
Tuesday’s European stock markets will be closed, as they were on Monday.
While Asian equities markets were divided on Tuesday, analysts indicated that market liquidity was at an all-time low.
Near the close, the Nikkei 225 Index in Japan rose 0.1%, the KOSPI Index in South Korea up 0.2%, and the Shanghai Composite Index in China fell 0.4%.
In Turkey, the Borsa Istanbul BIST 100 index closed Monday at 7,264.87 points, down 3.87% on a sales-weighted basis.
On Tuesday, the US Dollar/Turkish Lira exchange rate was 29.3070, after completing the day at 29.1550, 0.3% lower than its previous close on Monday.
