Price advances for gold, silver ahead of Yellen remarks

- Gold and silver futures prices are higher in early U.S. trading and have made strong recoveries after both markets hit multi-week lows overnight. The big rebounds suggest the bears are near-term exhausted and that today’s lows could be near-term market bottoms. However, more price strength is needed this week to better suggest such. Bullish “outside markets” are also working in favor of the precious metals bulls Tuesday—a lower U.S. dollar index and higher crude oil prices. February gold futures were last up $7.40 at $1,837.20 and March Comex silver was last up $0.399 at $25.265 an ounce.

The marketplace today will pay very close attention to former Federal Reserve Chair and incoming U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen as she testifies before a U.S. Senate finance committee. Yellen is expected to talk about the Biden Administration’s spending plans to reinvigorate the U.S. economy from the pandemic’s damage. Last week Biden laid out a $1.9 trillion government spending and assistance plan.

Global stock markets were mostly higher overnight. U.S. stock indexes are also pointed toward higher openings when the New York day session begins. Traders and investors are more upbeat to start the U.S. trading week, following the three-day holiday weekend. Market participants may become more cautious heading into the transition of U.S. power at midday Wednesday, amid high security in Washington, D.C. and at other state capitals around the country. Also, the U.S. just surpassed 400,000 Covid-19 deaths—the most in the world—and there are new concerns about the virus mutating. Those concerns are presently being offset by the vaccines that continue to roll out, albeit after a rocky start in the U.S.

The key “outside markets” today see the U.S. dollar index lower following the recent good rebound from a 2.5-year low scored earlier this month. Meantime, Nymex crude oil futures prices are firmer and are trading around $52.75 a barrel. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note stands at 1.12%.

There is no major U.S. economic data due for release Tuesday.