Gold crosses $2,000 mark, palladium at record high on Ukraine crisis

3.9.22 - Insane Gov't Spending Hurts Ukraine Help

Gold last traded at $1,988 an ounce. Silver at $25.59 an ounce.

NEWS SUMMARY: Precious metal prices retreated Wednesday on profit-taking as the recent commodity rally cooled. U.S. stocks rebounded as prices of energy and agriculture products eased following weeks of catapulting higher amid the fighting in Ukraine.

CNBC--"Gold prices scaled the $2,000 level for the first time in 1-1/2 years, as investors rushed to the safety of the metal in the wake of an escalating Russia-Ukraine crisis, while supply disruption fears sent palladium to an all-time high on Monday....

'Gold will likely find some heavy traffic around the $2,000 level initially, but once it is cleared, assuming no change in the Ukraine situation, it will quickly move to the $2,100 region and on to new all-time highs,' said OANDA senior analyst Jeffrey Halley.

Fighting stopped about 200,000 people from evacuating the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol for a second day in a row on Sunday, as Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to press ahead with his invasion unless Kyiv surrendered.

Holdings of the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust, rose to their highest since mid-March 2021 on Friday.

Spot gold may keep rising towards $2,065 per ounce, according to Reuters' technical analyst Wang Tao."