By Siti Radziah Hamzah

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 30 (Bernama) -- The gold futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed higher on Wednesday amid investors focussing their attention on the United States presidential election next week, said an analyst.

SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said the late-stage rally seemed powered by the US election jitters, as investors seek safety in gold amidst heightened uncertainty around the US policy shifts.

“I would wager that Asian buyers, in particular, will keep adding to gold’s upward momentum, amplifying volatility in the days ahead.

“As the threat of protectionist US policies looms, we are seeing a clear pivot from vulnerable currencies to safe havens like gold, and that momentum does not look like it is slowing anytime soon,” he told Bernama.

Spot month October 2024 jumped to US$2,784.0 from Tuesday’s US$2,758.70 per troy ounce, and  November 2024 strengthened to US$2,798.90 per troy ounce from US$2,775.0 per troy ounce yesterday.

Meanwhile, December 2024, January 2025 and February 2025 contracts all settled at US$2,807.0 per troy ounce against US$2,783.10 per troy ounce yesterday.  

Trading volume, however, increased to 20 lots from seven lots yesterday, while open interest went up to 27 contracts from 18 contracts previously.

According to the London Bullion Market Association’s afternoon fix on October 29, the price of physical gold stood at US$2,769.15 per troy ounce.

-- BERNAMA