By Gina Lee
Investing.com – Gold prices were up Tuesday morning in Asia, with the yellow metal starting December on a slightly positive note after coming off its worst month in four years.
Gold futures for February delivery were up 0.42% at $1,788.45 by 11:31 PM ET (3:31 AM GMT). Spot gold was up 0.17% against the dollar to $1,780.29.
Gold is coming off its third consecutive losing week and a loss of almost 6% through November. Investors sold off the safe-haven asset and poured into riskier investments like stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs).
Investors now appear to be less focused on the renewed surge of COVID-19 cases around the world or new lockdowns in places as disparate as London, Hong Kong and Toronto and, instead, paying more attention to the likely approval of multiple COVID-19 vaccines in the coming weeks. Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) said on Monday that it will request clearance for its vaccine candidate mRNA-1273 in the U.S. and Europe.
Gold investors have also taken a lead from testimony from US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin on Monday to the Senate Banking Committee, both of whom said the US economy is on the path to recovery but will need some help. Powell continues his testimony before Congress later in the day and on Wednesday, and the Fed meets for its last policy meeting of 2020 on Dec. 15 and 16.
Mnuchin called on Congress to use the CARES Act, worth $455 billion, to put in place a stimulus package to give the economy a boost. Powell, in turn, pointed to moderate growth as concern.
Risk assets investors may have also taken some cues from China’s Caixin manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for November, which came in at 54.9 in November, up from 53.6 in October.
Despite the mild uptick in morning trade in Asia, the mood for gold remains bearish. Gold prices have been falling since August, when they reached an all-time high of around $2,050.