2021.11.2218:03:00UTC+00Gold Futures Settle Sharply Lower As Dollar, Bond Yields Rise

Gold prices plunged sharply on Monday, resulting in the most active gold futures contract posting its biggest single-session loss in more than three months.

A stronger dollar and higher Treasury yields following the nomination of Jerome Powell as the Fed Chairman for a second term weighed on the yellow metal.

The dollar index climbed to 96.48, gaining nearly 0.5%.

The yield on U.S. 10-year Treasury Note rose to around 1.62%, surging up from Friday's 1.535%.

Gold futures for December ended down by $45.30 or about 2.4% at $1,806.30, the lowest settlement in about two weeks.

Silver futures for December ended lower by $0.484 at $24.297 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $4.3965 per pound, down $0.0110 from the previous close.

U.S. President Joe Biden today announced his intent to nominate Jerome Powell for a second term as Federal Reserve Chair.

The White House also revealed that Biden intends to nominate current Fed Governor Lael Brainard as Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve System.

"While there's still more to be done, we've made remarkable progress over the last 10 months in getting Americans back to work and getting our economy moving again," Biden said.

He added, "That success is a testament to the economic agenda I've pursued and to the decisive action that the Federal Reserve has taken under Chair Powell and Dr. Brainard to help steer us through the worst downturn in modern American history and put us on the path to recovery."

Biden expressed confidence Powell and Brainard's focus on keeping inflation low, prices stable, and delivering full employment will make the economy stronger than ever before.

Meanwhile, a report from the National Association of Realtors showed existing home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly increased in the month of October, climbing 0.8% to an annual rate of 6.34 million in the month, after spiking by 7% to a rate of 6.29 million in September.

The continued increase surprised economists, who had expected existing home sales to slump by 1.4% to a rate of 6.20 million.