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Gold hit a record $3,875.53 per ounce on Wednesday after five straight days of gains as the U.S. government shut down at 12:01 a.m.
Washington failed to pass a stopgap funding package, and the White House told agencies to “execute their plans for an orderly shutdown,” triggering the first closure in seven years.
The shutdown also threatens delays to key U.S. economic data, including Friday’s non-farm payroll numbers, creating more uncertainty for global markets and pushing the dollar lower.
Bullion is now up more than 47% this year, on track for the biggest annual gain since 1979. The surge has been fueled by central bank buying and heavy inflows into gold-backed ETFs after the Federal Reserve resumed interest rate cuts.
September ETF inflows were the largest in three years, according to Bloomberg data. Spot gold traded at $3,864.60 per ounce at 1:11 p.m. in Singapore after closing 0.7% higher on Tuesday, with the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index flat.
Global markets are trading sideways as shutdown reality deepens
The shutdown began after two failed attempts by the Republican-controlled Senate to pass a temporary spending bill on Tuesday. Democrats want the measure to include an extension of enhanced Obamacare tax credits for millions of Americans.
President Donald Trump had called a government shutdown “probably likely” and said, “I didn’t see them bend even a little bit.” The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission told employees to prepare for a potential funding lapse, as Cryptopolitam reported.
Trump also suggested his administration could take major actions during the shutdown, including cutting government benefits for “large numbers of people.” Both Republican and Democratic proposals failed, and the Senate adjourned after last-ditch votes.
Silver also rallied, jumping as much as 2% to $47.5598 per ounce, less than 5% from its all-time high. The metal is up over 60% this year, driven by the same macro forces lifting gold as well as tight supply after years of deficits.
Silver was up almost 1% after losing 0.6% in the previous session. Platinum and palladium both fell. The euro rose 0.3% to $1.1767, the highest since September 24. The dollar slipped 0.3% to 147.46, its lowest since September 19, extending a three-day slide of 1.2%.
U.S. futures reflected the strain. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures fell 192 points, or 0.41%, while S&P 500 futures dropped 0.44% and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.51%. Europe’s FTSE gained 0.54% to 9,350.43, while the SMI, HEX, IBEX 35, and DAX were unchanged.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.16%, and the Topix dropped 1.71%. The Reserve Bank of India held rates at 5.5% as expected, with the Nifty 50 up 0.31% and the Sensex up 0.22%. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.79%, and the Kosdaq gained 0.56%.
The Taiwan Weighted Index led Asian gains, adding 1.14% as healthcare and tech stocks drove the rise. Chip giant TSMC jumped 2.3% after Nvidia’s market cap passed $4.5 trillion. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.26%.
Markets in mainland China and Hong Kong were closed for a holiday. Oil prices also moved. Brent crude futures for December delivery rose 28 cents to $66.31 per barrel at 0500 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 26 cents to $62.63 per barrel.
The stock market has typically glided by previous government shutdowns, but analysts say this one could be riskier given the slew of economic factors at play. Though investors are still concerned about a slowing labor market and inflation risks as well as historically elevated stock valuations and market concentration levels.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated Tuesday that the shutdown will result in the furlough of about 750,000 federal employees. Over the weekend, Trump threatened mass firings of federal workers under a shutdown.
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