It fell below $4,000! Bank of America called for “buying on dips” for gold, but warned of a “pullback or no bottom”

The Zhitong Finance App learned that due to the tension in the Middle East driving up oil prices and US bond yields, market concerns about inflation and interest rate prospects have once again heated up. Gold futures fell below 4,000 US dollars/ounce on Thursday, closing at their lowest level in more than eight months.

The price of crude oil fell slightly, but remained high for almost a month. Earlier, Iran said that the Houthis in Yemen are ready to close the Red Sea oil transportation channel when the US military attacks Iran's electricity infrastructure, and the risk of energy supply in the Middle East continues to heat up.

In terms of economic data, after the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Producer Price Index (PPI) data both fell short of expectations this week, the US Department of Commerce announced a 0.2% month-on-month increase in retail sales in June, but after deducting automobile sales, core retail sales fell 0.2% month-on-month, falling short of expectations.

Forex.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada (Fawad Razaqzada) pointed out in the research report: “Even if some recent economic data weakens, continued high energy prices will make it difficult for the Federal Reserve to shift to a dovish position. For the same reason, investors currently prefer the US dollar over gold as an interest-free asset.”

Meanwhile, Bank of America technical analysts believe that the fall in gold prices provides a buying opportunity, but at the same time warns investors that the current pullback may not be over yet.

Bank of America analyst Paul Ciana (Paul Ciana) said in the report that gold may still be under pressure from August to September, adding that the price of gold may eventually find a more solid bottom after testing the support level of about 3,600 US dollars/ounce. He pointed out that this round of gold pullback “only lasted 24 weeks, while the previous upward cycle was 121 weeks long” and that the duration of the pullback was “significantly shorter than the previous upward trend.”

Siana said that the lower price of gold will provide investors with buying opportunities, and recommended that investors consider opening positions by adding positions in batches.

The July delivery futures price for the Comex Gold Contract (XAUUSD.CUR) fell 1.4% to 3985.60 US dollars/ounce; the Comex Silver recent contract (XAGUSD.CUR) July delivery futures price fell 2.1% to 55.898 US dollars/ounce, both of which set the lowest settlement prices since November 6 and November 26 of last year, respectively.