Both gold and silver are feeling heavy selling pressure through midday on Wednesday. Speeches made by Russian president Vladimir Putin and president of the US Federal Reserve Janet Yellen are making it very hard for precious metals to stop the losses from piling up even more than they have already. In stark contrast to last week, this 5-day trading session is not going to give the investing world an overwhelming number of economic reports upon which to reflect. For this reason it may be difficult for gold and silver to stop spot values from falling and even more difficult to gain back any of the last few days’ losses.
The world is continuing to focus on any and all matters stemming from Ukraine but a solution to the crisis may be in the works much sooner than anyone had expected.
Speeches By Putin, Yellen Have Put Intense Pressure On Precious Metals
In the early morning hours, even before markets in the US opened, Vladimir Putin was quoted as saying that he is willing to talk about peaceful solutions to the crisis in Ukraine. Despite much of the world claiming that Putin only stands to benefit from increased violence throughout Ukraine’s east, Mr. Putin claims that he only wants a peaceful solution to the ongoing crisis. Putin even went as far as to tell pro-Russian separatists who have taken up post throughout Ukraine’s east to postpone a referendum that was scheduled to be voted upon in less than a week’s time. The referendum would have more than likely given over another large chunk of Ukraine to Russia.
As you might have guessed, Putin’s supposed dedication to the peaceful resolution of the crisis in Ukraine put a major dent in safe-haven demand for gold and silver. Should Putin actually follow through with pursuing a peaceful resolution to the crisis in Ukraine it is more than likely that safe-haven demand for precious metals will fall off altogether.
Spot values were dealt another blow later in the morning when Janet Yellen spoke to the Congressional Joint Economic Committee and reiterated her positive outlook on the US economy. In addition to that, she also maintained that interest rates would remain low for the foreseeable future. Only a short while ago, if you can recall, investors delved into widespread panic as it was believed by many that interest rates would be risen as early as next spring. At the end of the day, both Putin and Yellen’s remarks both worked against precious metal spot values considerably. With few new inputs expected throughout the remainder of the week, it is more than likely that gold and silver will continue to feel heavy pressure, further pushing spot values downward.