By Gina Lee
Investing.com – Gold was up on Tuesday morning in Asia, with platinum prices rising for a third consecutive session, hitting its highest levels since September 2014. Hopes for a quick global economic recovery also increased expectations that demand for the auto-catalyst metal, used by automakers for catalytic converter manufacturing to clean car exhaust fumes, would also increase.
However, platinum could also see its third consecutive annual deficit in 2021 over supply concerns in South Africa, the world’s largest platinum producer.
Gold futures edged up 0.11% at $1825.20 by 11:38 PM ET (4:38 AM GMT), and the dollar, which normally moves inversely to gold, was down on Tuesday.
Benchmark U.S. Treasury yields climbed to their highest levels since March 2020, and global shares continued their rally on Thursday. Optimism for a quick economic recovery from COVID-19 and expectations of continuous low interest rates saw investors turn to riskier assets.
In Australia, the Reserve Bank of Australia released the minutes from its February meeting earlier in the day. The U.S. Federal Reserve is also scheduled to release the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s January meeting on Wednesday.
Across the Atlantic, the European Union (EU) is likely to decide when and how governments would start tapering support to their economies between March and May, with the rollout of vaccines in the region lifting COVID-19 lockdowns and the resumption of economic activity, officials said on Monday. EU finance ministers will meet later in the day to discuss the region’s current economic situation and outlook.
The EU’s GDP and Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW) Economic Sentiment index figures are also due to be released later in the day.
On the vaccine front, the World Health Organization on Monday approved AstraZeneca PLC (LON:AZN) and Oxford University’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use.