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Gold pulled back from a three-month high on Wednesday after a hotter-than-expected US inflation reading, with traders turning to Kevin Warsh’s first Jackson Hole address as Federal Reserve chairman for the next steer on rates.
Comex gold for December delivery, the most active contract, fell 1% to $4,649.10 an ounce by late morning in New York, retreating from an overnight high of $4,730.90. Tuesday’s finish was the contract’s strongest since the middle of May.
Spot gold traded 1.4% lower at $4,592.53, off Tuesday’s three-month peak, but is still up about 14% in August, a rebound that has carried bullion back above the 200-day moving average.
Comex silver for September delivery slipped 1.1% to $67.96 an ounce, with the spot metal down 0.8% at $68.03. Silver has climbed 18% this month, trimming its 2026 decline to under 5%.
The retreat gathered pace after the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge came in warm: headline PCE rose 3.7% from a year earlier in July, a tenth above forecasts, while the core measure held at 3.3%, in line. Consumer spending barely grew as goods purchases dropped, leaving markets weighing sticky inflation against a cooling consumer. Higher borrowing costs are typically a headwind for non-yielding bullion.
Another test comes on Friday, when Warsh delivers his first major speech as Fed chairman at the Jackson Hole symposium, an address that gives him the chance to counter criticism that he has not been forthright about his views on the economy.
‘Too early for a run at the records’
Gold’s three-week surge has been powered by the US Treasury’s unexpected intervention in the bond market, which revived the so-called debasement trade, the buying of hard assets as a hedge against ballooning deficits and a weaker dollar that fuelled last year’s record rally. In a sign of broadening participation, bullion-backed ETFs added more than 28 tonnes last week, the most since January.
“Precious metals are finding comfort in this higher range,” TD Securities analysts Ryan McKay and Bart Melek wrote in a note, while cautioning that elevated energy prices and persistent inflation risks limit near-term upside: “We caution this rally may be too early for a renewed run back to record highs.”
Miners’ monster month
Gold and silver equities eased with the metals on Wednesday, with Agnico Eagle down 3.7%, AngloGold 4.3% and Wheaton Precious Metals 4.8% by early afternoon in New York, but August has been a monster month for the group. Eldorado Gold has gained 55% since the end of July, Equinox 53%, AngloGold 49%, Hecla and Gold Fields 47%, Agnico Eagle 47%, Coeur 43%, Wheaton 43% and Newmont 41%, multiples of the 14% rise in gold and 18% advance in silver over the same stretch.
Spot gold is up about 6% in 2026, with silver down just under 5%.
(With files from Bloomberg)
