Expectations of aggressive Fed rate cuts propel Gold – Commerzbank

Gold price surpassed its previous all-time high and reached a new record level of $2,570 per troy ounce on Friday, supported by expectations that the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates aggressively, Commerzbank’s Commodity Analyst Carsten Fritsch notes.  

Expectations of large Fed rate cuts support Gold

“The driving factor is the marked increase in rate cut expectations since yesterday. It should be noted that the core index of US consumer prices rose slightly more than expected in August, which should make a 50 basis point rate cut by the Fed less likely in the coming week. The Fed Funds Futures are currently pricing in a probability of around 45% for this.”

“However, the market is still expecting the Fed to cut interest rates by around 100 basis points by the end of the year, i.e. rates would have to be cut by 50 basis points at one of the two remaining meetings after September. According to Fed funds futures, a further 100 basis points are then expected to follow by mid-2025. It is therefore likely due to these aggressive interest rate cut expectations for the coming months that the Gold price is rising.”

“In Euro terms, too, Gold jumped to a new record high of more than 2,300 EUR per troy ounce yesterday. Yesterday's interest rate cut by the ECB probably provided a tailwind here, especially as the market also expects the ECB to cut interest rates further in the coming months.”