The beginning of the new year brought losses to the precious metal. Traders turned away from it, disappointed with how the year 2021 ended in the gold market. As a result, gold declined by 3.6%.

Last week, gold rose by 0.9%, which led to a monthly increase of almost 3% and a quarterly increase of about 4%.

However, the yellow asset ended the year with losses. It showed the sharpest annual drop in 6 years. It plunged by 3.6%, while it fell by more than 10% in 2015.

The results of 2021 disappointed investors. On Monday, the gold market was dominated by a bearish mood. During trading, the precious metal fell 1.6%, or $ 28.50, and fell to a 2-week low of $ 1,800.10.

The fading fears about a new strain of coronavirus were also a strong negative factor for gold. The low mortality rate and hospitalization of patients with Omicron give hope that COVID-19 will not paralyze the world economy in the coming year.

On the wave of optimism about the prospects for global economic growth in 2022, the US stock market was in an optimistic state on Monday. The main US indices rose – Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 0.68%, and the S&P 500 also did so by 0.64%.

A good start to the year for the US dollar also contributed to the rise of indicators. The US currency strengthened by 0.3% due to the significant dynamics of the yield of 10-year US bonds, which reached the highest level yesterday since November.

Most likely, the US dollar and yields will continue their upward movement this week. They will be supported by the monthly report of the US Department of Labor for December.

Economists expect an increase in hourly wages by 0.4% compared to November when the indicator rose by 0.3%. The number of jobs in the non-agricultural sector of the country is also forecasted to rise by 400 thousand. This is almost twice the value recorded in the previous month.

According to strategist Chintan Karnani, it is imperative for gold to trade above the 200-day moving average of $ 1,806.40 right now in order to remain in the short-term bullish zone. Otherwise, we will see a sharper increase in market sales.

Meanwhile, most traders are cautiously optimistic about the future prospects of gold, despite the fact that historically, January is considered a seasonally favorable period for the yellow asset.

At this stage, investors prefer more risky financial instruments to the precious metal, i.e. stocks. However, experts warn that this year will be difficult for the stock market.

It is threatened by rising inflation, continued soft monetary policy by central banks, and a coronavirus that will not go away in the next 12 months. Against this background, gold will feel as comfortable as possible.

At the same time, geopolitical problems will help gold, which will become even more acute in 2022, analyst Jim Wyckoff believes. A bubble in the Chinese real estate market, which may burst, will facilitate this.