Gold reclaims $5,000 as China’s central bank extends gold-buying spree for 15th month

 Gold and silver futures rose for the fourth session out of five Monday, with gold clawing back over the $5,000/oz level, as dip-buyers returned to the market after the historic rout at the end of last month; gold has recovered around half of the losses sustained since sinking from an all-time high reached on January 29.

Large institutional investors appear to remain bullish on bullion despite the recent selloff, as illustrated by the People's Bank of China, which extended its gold-buying streak to 15 months in January.

The value of China's gold reserves increased to $369.58B at the end of last month from $319.45B at the end of the previous month, the PBOC said.

"Consistent central bank demand, with China at the epicenter, has become both an important stabilizing force and a market bellwether," B2PRIME Group Executive Director Eugenia Mykuliak said in a note, adding that steady official buying is building a structural floor under the market.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent cited Chinese traders as a reason behind the recent wild swings in the gold market, telling Fox News that "things have gotten a little unruly in China... They’re having to tighten margin requirements. So gold looks to me kind of like a classical, speculative blow-off."

The U.S. dollar fell 0.8% on Monday to its lowest in more than a week, making dollar-priced bullion cheaper for overseas buyers.

"The big mover today [in gold prices] is the U.S. dollar," TD Securities global head of commodity strategy Bert Melek said in a note, adding that expectations are rising for weak economic data.

Investors will closely watch this week’s release of U.S. non-farm payrolls, consumer prices and initial jobless claims for fresh signals on monetary policy, with markets already pricing in at least two rate cuts of 25 basis points in 2026.

Gold's near-term path may depend on how new jobs data looks when released this week, likely playing a large part in determining if more rate cuts are on the way, ADM Investor Services said.

Front-month Comex gold (XAUUSD:CUR) for February delivery closed +2% to $5,050.90/oz, and front-month Comex February silver (XAGUSD:CUR) settled +6.9% to $82.065/oz, the best showing for both metals since February 3.

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https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/gold-reclaims-5-000-as-china-s-central-bank-extends-gold-buying-spree-for-15th-month/ar-AA1W0TMM