The current value of gold undergoes correction after historic records: what to expect in the coming days

The US trading session on Monday, December 29th, marked one of the most significant daily declines for precious metals markets. The market experienced a systematic profit-taking by traders operating in the futures sector, particularly with the massive closing of long speculative positions accumulated during the recent upward movement.

Price Movements and Recorded Volatility

During the overnight session, silver futures contracts with March expiration on the COMEX (New York Mercantile Exchange) had previously reached the all-time high of $82.67 per ounce. A similar record was set last week by gold futures with February delivery, which reached $4,584.00 per ounce. On the correction day, the February gold contract posted a loss of $203.4, closing the session at $4,349.3 per ounce. Similarly, the March silver contract fell by $6.87 by the end of the day, closing at $71.895 per ounce.

Market Context and Related Dynamics

The dollar index showed a slight appreciation during the day. In the energy segment, crude oil prices rose, trading around $59.25 per barrel. Regarding US Treasury securities, the 10-year yield was at 4.118%.

Current Gold Value and Nature of the Correction

From a technical perspective, today’s decline represents a natural correction within the broader upward trend characterizing the period. In the short term, metals experienced some technical pressure, but the overall deterioration does not yet appear severe. However, if on Tuesday or Wednesday a renewed wave of significant selling emerges, the technical picture could suffer more serious damage, indicating that the market has identified a short-term peak. Alternatively, if gold and silver recover vigorously in the coming days, today’s low could become the new “minimum retracement point” within the developing bullish trend. In summary, the price movements over the next two trading days are crucial for defining the trend in the following days.

Critical Technical Levels and Scenarios for Operators

For February gold futures: bullish traders should focus efforts on surpassing the primary resistance located at $4400.00 per ounce, with an additional target at the previous all-time high of $4584.00 per ounce. The secondary resistance is at $4433.00 per ounce. On the downside, bears will aim to reach the critical support at $4200.00 per ounce. The first support level is identified at today’s low of $4316.00 per ounce, followed by support at $4300.00 per ounce.

For March silver futures: today’s market behavior formed a significant bearish technical structure of “exhaustion of buying pressure” – bulls exhausted their momentum at the highs, and prices fell decisively to the day’s lows. The daily chart pattern also shows a clear “bearish reversal” configuration. Bullish traders will need to break through the resistance at today’s all-time high of $82.67 per ounce, with intermediate resistances at $72.50 and $73.00 per ounce. Bears’ first target is support at $70.00 per ounce, followed by the critical level at $67.50 per ounce, and further support at $69.00 per ounce.

Clarification on the Operation of Gold Markets

The gold market operates through two distinct price determination channels. The first is the spot market, where transactions reflect immediate delivery purchases. The second is the futures market, where prices incorporate scheduled deliveries at predetermined future dates. Considering year-end portfolio adjustments and liquidity availability in the system, the futures contract with the highest trading volume on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is currently the December expiration, although the main current value of gold continues to be influenced by behaviors in longer-dated contracts.