|

Gold Price Forecast: XAU/USD bears target $1,688 ahead of key US data – Confluence Detector

  • Gold price licks its wounds near monthly lows after testing the $1,700 mark.
  • US dollar rallies with yields as investors cheer hawkish Fed and ECB rate hike bets.
  • XAU/USD could extend losses towards $1,688 on a firm break below $1,700.    

Gold price is on a five-day downtrend, eyeing a sustained move below the $1,700 mark amid unrelenting buying interest seen around the US dollar. Markets seem to be convinced about a 75 bps Fed rate hike in September, reflective of the ongoing rally in the US Treasury yields across the curve. The two-year US rates are at their highest level since 2007 while the benchmark 10-year yields are at two-month highs above 3.20%. According to CME FedWatch Tool, there is a 72% probability of an outsized rate hike this month. Further, Eurozone inflation hit another record high at 9.1% in August, cementing a 75 bps Sept ECB rate hike. Expectations of aggressive tightening from the Fed and the ECB offset weak US ADP jobs data, weighing negatively on the non-yielding bullion. The bright metal now looks forward to the US ISM Manufacturing PMI and Nonfarm Payrolls data for fresh trading directives.

Also read: Gold Price Forecast: XAUUSD close to confirming a long-term double top

Gold Price: Key levels to watch

The Technical Confluence Detector shows that the gold price is gathering strength for the next push lower, as bears aim for the pivot point one-day S2 at $1,700.

If sellers find a strong foothold below the latter, a sharp sell-off towards the pivot point one-day S3 at $1,688 will be inevitable.

On the flip side, any recovery attempts will need acceptance above the convergence of the pivot point one-week S2 and the previous low four-hour at $1,707.

The previous day’s low of $1,710 will challenge the road to recovery, above which the Bollinger Band one-day Lower at $1,713 will come into play.

Further up, a dense cluster of resistance levels around $1,716 will be a tough nut to crack for bulls. That price zone is the confluence of the Fibonacci 38.2% one-day and SMA5 four-hour.

Here is how it looks on the tool

fxsoriginal

About Technical Confluences Detector

The TCD (Technical Confluences Detector) is a tool to locate and point out those price levels where there is a congestion of indicators, moving averages, Fibonacci levels, Pivot Points, etc.  If you are a short-term trader, you will find entry points for counter-trend strategies and hunt a few points at a time. If you are a medium-to-long-term trader, this tool will allow you to know in advance the price levels where a medium-to-long-term trend may stop and rest, where to unwind positions, or where to increase your position size.

Author

Dhwani Mehta

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

More from Dhwani Mehta
Share:

Editor's Picks

GBP/USD tumbles to three-day lows around 1.3420

GBP/USD comes under extra selling pressure and revisits the area of multi-day lows near 1.3420 in quite a bearish start to the week. Cable’s decline comes amid the firmer Greenback as investors continue to assess developments in the US-Iran conflict. Moving forward, attention will turn to the UK employment report on Tuesday.


EUR/USD remains offered near 1.1400

EUR/USD trades on the back foot for the third day in a row and approaches the key 1.1400 threshold, or multi-day troughs, on Monday. The pair’s pullback comes amid persistent uncertainty surrounding the Middle East crisis and a solid performance of the US Dollar. Later this week, attention will turn to the ECB’s interest rate decision.

Gold stuck just above $4,000

Gold reverses Friday’s uptick, gyrating around the key $4,000 mark per troy ounce at the beginning of the week. Escalating military action in the Middle East provides some support to the safe-haven metal, although expectations of higher US interest rates bolster the US Dollar and keeps its under the microscope.

Ethereum remains fragile underneath the surface despite outperformance

Ethereum's outperformance over the past week shows it's gaining relative strength against other top cryptocurrencies, but under the surface, key metrics indicate its rise remains fragile. Between last week and Wednesday, ETH recorded double-digit gains, outperforming fellow crypto majors Bitcoin, XRP, and Solana, before the broader market began to correct on Thursday.

Ripple Price: XRP bears retail control despite increasing retail demand
Ripple (XRP) faces sustained selling pressure as bears maintain control on Monday. The remittance token has struggled to break above the $1.10 resistance since last Thursday, as risk sentiment weighs. Demand for XRP derivatives has gradually increased since last week, with the perpetual futures Open Interest (OI) averaging 2.4 billion XRP on Monday, up from 2.13 billion XRP the previous day.
US Dollar mid-year outlook: Exceptional currency, exceptional risks?
The US Dollar enters the second half of 2026 in a markedly different position from a year ago. The King currency has recovered, reflecting persistent US inflation, changing expectations for Fed policy, geopolitical tensions and renewed demand for defensive assets.