Gold surrenders gains as Hormuz ship ban lifts yields

XAU/USD trades near $4,240 on Thursday, slightly off the $4,304 intraday high.
WTI trades higher as Tehran cautions that a shipping framework would not automatically reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Friday's NFP report.

Agustin Wazne FXStreet

Gold (XAU/USD) has given up the whole of Thursday's advance, trading near $4,240 after touching $4,304 earlier in the session. The reversal came as the reported terms of the Strait of Hormuz arrangement worked their way through the rates market, lifting US Treasury yields and reviving bets on a Federal Reserve (Fed) hike. The US Dollar (USD) turned with them, and the US Dollar Index (DXY) now trades up 0.26% near the 100.00 level.

That is the opposite of the morning's setup, and the mechanism is worth following. Fars reported that vessels linked to the United States (US), Israel, and other countries Tehran considers hostile would be barred from the waterway under the proposed deal. Crude rose on the supply threat, and higher energy prices feed straight into the inflation problem the Fed is already worried about. Rising yields raise the cost of holding a non-yielding asset, so the same headline that would normally lift Gold ended up capping it.

Friday's Nonfarm Payrolls report is the immediate hurdle as a Reuters survey points to an 80K gain in July after June's 57K, with the Unemployment Rate steady at 4.2%.

Technical Analysis:

On the 4-hour chart, XAU/USD trades at $4,253, maintaining a bullish near-term bias as price holds above both the 20-period Simple Moving Average (SMA) at $4,146 and the 100-period SMA at $4,073. The cluster of horizontal supports at $4,248 and $4,232 sits just beneath the market, reinforcing the constructive structure, while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 72 signals overbought conditions that could temper immediate upside momentum.

On the topside, initial resistance appears at $4,276, ahead of a stronger barrier at $4,304, where fresh buying would be needed to extend the rally. On the downside, the first layer of support is seen at $4,248, followed by $4,232, with the 20-period SMA at $4,146 and the 100-period SMA at $4,074 providing deeper structural demand if a corrective pullback unfolds.

(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool. Know more.)

Author

Agustin Wazne

FXStreet

Agustin Wazne joined FXStreet as a Junior News Editor, focusing on Commodities and covering Majors.

AUD/USD hangs near three-week low, below 0.6950 as traders await US NFP report

AUD/USD hits a three-week low during the Asian session on Friday as the RBA’s dovish shift and a rout in equity markets weigh on the risk-sensitive Aussie. However, the recent slump in US bond yields to a two-month low keeps US Dollar bulls on the back foot and limits losses for the currency pair as traders look to the US NFP report for a fresh impetus.

USD/JPY bounces off three-week low; keeps the red near 157.65 as focus remains on US NFP

USD/JPY bounces off the weekly low set during the Asian session, as bears turn cautious ahead of the US NFP report due later this Friday. The upside seems limited as the recent slump in US bond yields and hopes of Iran war de-escalation undermine the US Dollar. Moreover, a hawkish BoJ and intervention risks support the Japanese Yen, capping the pair.

Gold loses the grip; $4,000 comes next on the downside

Gold sets aside two daily advances in a row on Friday, opening the door to a potential test of the key $4,000 mark per troy ounce. The precious metal’s retracement follows a decent improvement in the sentiment surrounding the US Dollar, solid NFP data and higher US Treasury yields across the board.

Democrats win House and Senate in US midterms: Why isn’t all bad news for crypto

The biggest story this week was Tuesday’s US midterm elections, which saw Democrats win control of both the House and the Senate in a clear blue wave. This political shift in the US has triggered sharp price swings across the cryptocurrency market.

Week ahead – Inflation and geopolitics in focus as US political landscape shifts

Post-midterm election euphoria fizzles out as risk aversion prevails. US CPI, PPI and Fedspeak on the radar as Fed hike bets remain supported. Oil retreat pauses on mixed hopes about the ongoing conflicts.

US Dollar breaks below 101.50 as Democrats sweep Congress

The US Dollar (USD) comes under heavy selling pressure on Wednesday, with the US Dollar Index (DXY) falling around 0.5% to trade near 101.35 after sliding below the 101.50 level. The Greenback retreats to its lowest level in four weeks as investors reassess the political and economic outlook following the Democratic Party's sweeping victory in the United States (US) midterm elections.