1. U.S. stock futures looked to recover on Monday morning as investors braced for a full earnings docket and the Federal Reserve’s next policy decision this week. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%, while those on the S&P 500 added 0.3%. Contracts for the Nasdaq-100 traded higher at 0.4% after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite posted their second straight week of losses. Oil prices dipped, with Brent crude futures falling below $110 per barrel after the global benchmark hit its highest level since April amid escalating tensions in the Middle East. The key event this week will be the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting, where Fed officials are expected to hold rates steady.
2. China’s AI stock rally has collapsed, wiping out about $480 billion as the index of AI and chip companies fell 40% from its July high. U.S. AI stocks have taken a far smaller hit so far. The Nasdaq is about 6% below the record it set three weeks ago. The damage is wide. AI stocks account for 42% of China’s market value and 57% of its trading. The broader CSI 300 index of China’s biggest companies entered a bear market last week. Microsoft and Alphabet report Wednesday after the market closes, hours after the Federal Reserve’s rate decision. Amazon follows Thursday, as BeInCrypto’s Big Tech earnings preview outlined.
3. Americans’ confidence in the economy rebounded somewhat in October as gas prices fell modestly, though they remain much higher than last year at this time. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index jumped 7.5 points to 91.7 in October from 84.2 last month. Respondents’ views of their present situation rose by 6.9 points to 72.6 while their short-term outlook climbed 8.6 points to 120.4. “The recovery was in line with retail gasoline prices easing from September to October,” said Fergus McCormick, a senior economist for The Conference Board.
4. The U.S. economy saw strong economic growth in the third quarter. The Commerce Department reported that gross domestic product expanded at an annual rate of 3.4 percent in the period from July to September, beating expectations – and much stronger than the 2.2 percent expansion in the April to June period. This was the fastest economic growth America has seen in nearly three years, when the economy expanded 3.4 percent in the final quarter of 2023. Gross domestic product measures the total value of all goods and services produced over the course of one year. Consumer spending rose at a brisk 3.8 percent pace in the third quarter, and business investment was up sharply, thanks to the AI boom.
5. Mortgage rates dropped slightly for the second straight week, though they remain stubbornly above 7%. The average mortgage rate was 7.24% this week through Wednesday, according to Freddie Mac data, down from 7.32% a week earlier. The 10-year Treasury yield, which mortgage rates closely track, hovered around 5% this week, down slightly from levels seen a few weeks earlier. Mortgage applications for home purchases improved slightly in response to lower rates, jumping 4% through Friday from a week earlier. But many buyers still feel sidelined by today’s rates: Purchase applications are 18% below last year’s pace, and refinancing applications have plunged more than 60%.
6. The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits hovered near 57-year lows last week amid labor market resilience. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 194,000 for the week ended October 24. Economists polled had forecasted 199,000 claims for the latest week. Claims have stayed below 200,000 since mid-September and are within striking distance of the 189,000 level touched in mid-July, which was the lowest reading since 1969.
7. At the time of writing, Brent crude was trading at $116.56 per barrel, with West Texas Intermediate at $103.35 per barrel. Brent crude has booked gains of 11% this month alone, with WTI adding even more, at 14%. Since the end of June, Brent has gained over $40 per barrel, and WTI has gone up by some $34 per barrel.
8. The EUR/USD pair trades in positive territory around 1.1190 during the early European trading hours on Friday. A hawkish pause from the European Central Bank provides some support to the Euro against the U.S. Dollar.
9. At the time of writing, USD/JPY trades at around 157.80. The USD/JPY pair has remained in a limited range between 156.08 and 159.04 for over a month. The 20-day exponential moving average at 157.77 is flat-lined, reflecting that the overall trend is sideways.
Federal Reserve officials voted 10-2 to keep interest rates unchanged, as inflation continues to pose an issue for central bankers. The Fed’s benchmark rates remained in the 3.75% to 4% range, as widely expected. A rate hike in December, however, appears more likely, according to the Fed’s dot plot and fed funds futures. The Fed has positioned itself to continue assessing additional data. At the post-FOMC-meeting press conference, Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh reiterated his commitment to bringing down inflation, stated that the Fed’s “monetary medicine” is beginning to work, and announced changes to the Fed’s meeting schedule next year.
Gold became a major investment theme at the start of the year as central bank demand helped drive prices to record highs above $5,600 an ounce; however, sentiment has turned more cautious in the second half of 2026 as the conflict in the Middle East remains far from over. Gold’s longer-term investment appeal remains intact; the precious metal continues to face headwinds as central banks prioritize economic stability and energy security over accumulating more gold. It would seem that the gold market has returned to trading on more traditional fundamentals, including real interest rates and the U.S. dollar. At the same time, central banks that previously helped drive the precious metal’s historic rally have been forced to redirect their attention toward securing critical energy supplies. Haworth said that although central banks have not abandoned their long-term interest in gold, their near-term priorities have changed. He noted that many countries are focused on protecting their economies from persistent energy disruptions rather than expanding their monetary reserves.
Global commodity prices are set to surge 23% in 2026, the World Bank said on Wednesday, citing rising energy prices and disruptions to cargo shipping during the Middle East war, grain shipment problems in the Black Sea, and high demand for safe-haven assets such as gold. Commodity prices were expected to ease by 7% next year, it said, but continued shocks – including forecasts for the worst El Niño weather effect since 1950 – could keep food commodity prices elevated. The bank released its twice-yearly report on Wednesday, two days before foreign ministers from the world’s 20 largest economies are due to gather in Atlanta, Georgia, for a meeting that will focus on the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine.
Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, said Thursday that a security incident affected $6.3 billion in customer assets in what would be the largest crypto hack ever. Binance has temporarily suspended all withdrawals and deposits and said it would cover all losses of an estimated $6.3 billion in digital assets using its Secure Asset Fund for users and company reserves. Much of this story is still uncertain: the final losses, the number of breach points, even who is responsible. That uncertainty is itself the lesson: by the time the facts are settled, the damage is done. Binance can freeze assets and promise to cover losses because it has billions in reserve and traceable transactions.
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)
| Oct. 23, 2026 | Oct. 30, 2026 | Net Change | ||
| Gold | $4,000.14 | $3,883.35 | -116.79 | -2.92% |
| Silver | $54.05 | $49.07 | -4.98 | -9.21% |
| Platinum | $1,557.25 | $1,424.63 | -132.62 | -8.52% |
| Palladium | $1,046.89 | $974.93 | -71.96 | -6.87% |
| Dow | 52207.79 | 51785.82 | -421.97 | -0.81% |
Month End to Month End Close
| Sept. 30, 2026 | Oct. 30, 2026 | Net Change | ||
| Gold | $4,151.83 | $3,883.35 | -268.48 | -6.47% |
| Silver | $60.18 | $49.07 | -11.11 | -18.46% |
| Platinum | $1,700.47 | $1,424.63 | -275.84 | -16.22% |
| Palladium | $1,207.46 | $974.93 | -232.53 | -19.26% |
| Dow | 50906.05 | 51785.82 | 879.77 | 1.73% |
Previous Year Comparison
| Oct. 31, 2025 | Oct. 30, 2026 | Net Change | ||
| Gold | $3,997.35 | $3,883.35 | -114.00 | -2.85% |
| Silver | $48.66 | $49.07 | 0.41 | 0.84% |
| Platinum | $1,576.19 | $1,424.63 | -151.56 | -9.62% |
| Palladium | $1,445.44 | $974.93 | -470.51 | -32.55% |
| Dow | 47562.87 | 51785.82 | 4222.95 | 8.88% |
Here are your Short-Term Support and Resistance Levels for the upcoming week.
| Gold | Silver | |
| Support | 3917/3839/3702 | 51.75/49.59/46.15 |
| Resistance | 4132/4268/4347 | 57.35/60.78/62.95 |
| Platinum | Palladiumn | |
| Support | 1508/1463/1385 | 1010/973/908 |
| Resistance | 1632/1709/1755 | 1113/1178/1215 |