Gold erases loss as investors weigh impact of Trump’s Covid-19

Gold erased a decline after President Donald Trump announced early Friday that he and First Lady Melania Trump had tested positive for Covid-19, roiling global assets and lifting the dollar.

Trump tweeted that he and the first lady would “begin our quarantine process,” shortly after one of his closest aides, Hope Hicks, had fallen ill with the coronavirus.

Bullion has rallied to a record this year as vast amounts of stimulus were pumped into economies to curb the damage from the coronavirus pandemic. While prices stumbled last month amid a stronger dollar, the precious metal is still supported by low interest rates, a resurgence in Covid cases in some parts of the world, and the heightened uncertainty heading into the US elections.

Spot gold traded 0.1% lower at $1 904.84 an ounce at 1:42 p.m. in Singapore, after earlier losing as much as 0.8%. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.3%. Silver for immediate delivery was level at $23.8261 an ounce, recovering from a 1.3% loss.

In a memo, Trump’s physician said that the president and first lady plan to remain at the White House “during their convalescence” and that the medical unit would “maintain a vigilant watch.”

Investors are also awaiting the monthly nonfarm payrolls data due later Friday. Bloomberg Economics analysts do not expect the September report — the last national tally released before Americans head to the polls — to be consequential enough to tilt the election outcome.