Gold and silver prices surge to 2-wk highs on safe-haven buying and bullish charts

New York (Sept 23)  Gold and silver prices are higher, with and silver prices sharply up in midday U.S. trading Monday. Risk aversion in the world marketplace has crept back to start the trading week, as there is still uncertainty on the geopolitical front. The technical postures for both gold and silver markets also are solidly bullish. December gold futures were last up $14.80 an ounce at 1,529.90. December Comex silver prices were last up $0.801 at $18.65 an ounce.

There was more protesting and related violence in Hong Kong over the weekend, the U.S.-China trade negotiations have taken another step backward and there is mounting concern regarding weakening global economic growth. U.S.-Iran tensions are also smoldering in the background. All of the above making traders and investors around the globe extra nervous.

Purchasing managers’ index (PMI) reports coming out of the European Union Monday showed the Euro zone composite PMI for September come in at a lower-than-expected 50.4. A reading below 50.0 suggests contraction. More worrisome, Germany’s manufacturing PMI in September came in at 41.4, which was also worse than expected and suggests the German economy is teetering on recession.

Nymex crude oil prices are slightly higher and trading around $58.25 a barrel. The Wall Street Journal reported over the weekend that it could take months, not weeks, to fully restore production at the oil installations attacked in Saudi Arabia in mid-September.

The other key outside market today sees the U.S. dollar index trading modestly up.

Live 24 hours gold chart [Kitco Inc.]

Technically, December gold futures prices were nearer the session high. The bulls have the solid overall near-term technical advantage amid a four-month-old uptrend in place on the daily bar chart.

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