1. Stocks finished trading on Friday, the second-to-last session of the “Santa Claus Rally” period, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average leading the major indexes higher to open the new year as investors began to evaluate the 2026 landscape. For the abbreviated holiday week, the blue-chip Dow led the way with a gain of 319 points, or 0.66%. The benchmark S&P 500 picked up 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished just barely below the flatline in a session that saw several of the “Magnificent 7” stocks stumble while semiconductor names soared. In the week ahead, the first full week of trading in 2026 will see economic data get back on track after last year’s multi-month disruption following the 43-day government shutdown that spanned all of October and about half of November.
2. Gold and silver prices are sharply higher in early U.S. trading on Monday, on safe-haven bidding following the surprise U.S. raid in Venezuela that captured its dictator. February gold was last up $97.70 at $4,427.40. March silver prices were up $3.66 at $75.65. Technically, February gold futures bulls’ next upside price objective is to produce a close above solid resistance at the contract/record high of $4,584.00. March silver futures bulls’ next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at the record high of $82.67. The key outside markets today sees the U.S. dollar index slightly firmer. Crude oil prices are slightly up and trading around $57.50 a barrel. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note is presently 4.17%.
3. President Trump’s latest housing affordability bet calls for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy $200 billion of mortgage bonds, a move that aims to help push mortgage rates below 6%. The directive is designed to influence mortgage spreads, which are the difference between the 10-year Treasury yield and 30-year mortgage rates. Historically, mortgage rates are about 1.8 percentage points higher than Treasury yields, but spreads have averaged higher than that in recent years, helping keep mortgage rates elevated. Most housing experts agree that additional mortgage-bond purchases could help lower mortgage rates. But the extent of the potential rate drop isn’t clear, and a plan that aims to boost housing demand without addressing the country’s low housing supply is still likely to leave affordability hurdles in place.
4. U.S. private employers brought on 41,000 new positions in December, according to data from the private payroll processor ADP out on Wednesday morning, capping a year that saw lackluster hiring and rising layoffs define a labor market that sputtered in the second half of 2025. Wednesday’s report also shows signs that changing labor market dynamics are creating less demand for new workers rather than an outright reduction in the overall workforce.
5. In the week ending January 3, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 208,000, an increase of 8,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised up by 1,000 from 199,000 to 200,000. The 4-week moving average was 211,750, a decrease of 7,250 from the previous week’s revised average. This is the lowest level for this average since April 27, 2024, when it was 210,250. The previous week’s average was revised up by 250 from 218,750 to 219,000.
6. Both the WTI and Brent benchmarks traded about 0.7% higher as of 8:05 a.m. ET, as the market assessed potential risks to supply from the ongoing unrest in Iran. The U.S. benchmark crude futures, WTI, were up by 0.74% to trade at $58.16 per barrel, while the international benchmark, Brent, was up above the $62 per barrel mark, at $62.42, up by 0.71%. Oil prices had jumped by more than 3% on Thursday amid heightened geopolitical risk, from Venezuela to Iran.
7. The selling pressure on EUR/USD now gathers extra pace, prompting the pair to hit fresh multi-week lows in the 1.1625-1.1620 band on Friday. The continuation of the downward bias comes in response to further gains in the U.S. Dollar as market participants continue to assess the mixed release of Nonfarm Payrolls in December.
8. The Japanese Yen adds to its intraday losses through the first half of the European session amid the uncertainty over the timing of the next interest rate cut by the Bank of Japan and escalating China-Japan row. This, along with worries that consumption momentum could fade if inflation continues to outpace wage growth in early 2026, overshadows an unexpected rise in Japan’s Household Spending data for November.
Silver was the top-performing precious metal last year, surging nearly 150%. Platinum followed closely, rising more than 126%, while palladium also posted strong gains, climbing roughly 80%. Despite last year’s rally, platinum group metals (PGMs) have lagged the broader precious metals complex. Analysts expect tightening supply conditions and resilient demand to support prices through 2026. Platinum and palladium have faced headwinds in recent years as electric vehicle (EV) adoption accelerated, reducing demand for catalytic converters. Roughly 80% of PGM demand comes from the automotive sector, where the metals are used to reduce harmful emissions in internal combustion engines (ICE). However, sentiment has begun to shift as expectations for EV growth have been modestly downgraded. Analysts at TD Securities expect demand for ICE vehicles to remain strong in the U.S., providing ongoing support for PGM demand. Automotive demand remains a critical pillar for platinum, but it is not the only source of consumption. Platinum also plays an important role in glass manufacturing and electronics. While demand is expected to remain robust in 2026, analysts question whether supply will be able to keep pace.
U.S. services activity expanded in December at the fastest pace in more than a year, fueled by solid demand growth and a pickup in hiring. The Institute for Supply Management’s index of services rose 1.8 points to 54.4, the highest since October 2024. Readings above 50 indicate expansion in the largest part of the economy. The December figure exceeded all projections in a survey of economists. New orders expanded by the most since September 2024, and a measure of business activity, which parallels the ISM’s factory output gauge, climbed to a one-year high. Export bookings grew at the fastest pace in more than a year. The services gauge is at odds with a struggling manufacturing sector. Separate figures from ISM on Monday showed December factory activity shrank by the most since 2024.
The U.S. economy added 50,000 jobs in December, according to Labor Department data published Friday, amid broader concerns about the cooling job market as out-of-work Americans struggle to land roles. The unemployment rate declined to 4.4%, from 4.5% in November. A survey of economists had estimated a median gain of 70,000 jobs and a 4.5% unemployment rate in the final jobs report for 2025. Revised data for November, meanwhile, showed a gain of 56,000 jobs rather than 64,000, the Labor Department said Friday, while revised data for October showed a loss of 173,000 jobs compared to the earlier reported decline of 105,000.
Volatility should be expected to remain high as investors will be closely watching for hints on the upcoming monetary policy direction. Many investors have redoubled their efforts to ensure that their portfolios are sufficiently diversified in the hope that they will be able to withstand corrections in multiple market sectors. Many of these investors have included physical precious metals as part of their diversification plans, given their long history as a hedge against both inflation and during times of economic turmoil. Remember, the key to profitability through the ownership of physical precious metals is to own the physical product and hold it for the long term. Always remember that you should never overextend your ability to maintain ownership of your precious metals over the long run.
Trading Department – Precious Metals International Ltd.
Friday to Friday Close (New York Closing Prices)
| Jan. 2, 2026 | Jan. 9, 2026 | Net Change | |
| $4,323.15 | $4,484.70 | 161.55 | 3.74% |
| $71.88 | $79.54 | 7.66 | 10.66% |
| $2,131.68 | $2,277.55 | 145.87 | 6.84% |
| $1,639.89 | $1,821.03 | 181.14 | 11.05% |
| 48371.64 | 49504.07 | 1132.43 | 2.34% |
Previous Year Comparison
| Jan. 10, 2025 | Jan. 9, 2026 | Net Change | |
| $2,695.94 | $4,484.70 | 1788.76 | 66.35% |
| $30.42 | $79.54 | 49.12 | 161.47% |
| $966.44 | $2,277.55 | 1311.11 | 135.66% |
| $953.44 | $1,821.03 | 867.59 | 91.00% |
| 41929.32 | 49504.07 | 7574.75 | 18.07% |
Here are your Short-Term Support and Resistance Levels for the upcoming week.
| Gold | Silver | |
| Support | 4385/4219/4109 | 75.45/67.26/64.87 |
| Resistance | 4495/4660/4771 | 80.84/89.03/94.43 |
| Platinum | Palladiumn | |
| Support | 2187/1890/1632 | 1713/1413/1183 |
| Resistance | 2445/2743/3001 | 1943/2244/2474 |