Gold higher on the day, above 1,350, shrugs-off the risk-on trade on Wall Street

• Gold is up 0.3% on Wednesday, propped up by technical buying despite risk-on mood.
• Risk appetite persists with the stellar earnings season on Wall Street and a firmer US dollar.
• The geopolitical tensions between the US and Syria, Russia and China are still present but the stock market focus on earnings. 

Gold is trading higher on Wednesday a little after the New York Stock Exchange opening bell. Despite the risk-on trade, gold, which is considered a safe-haven asset, is trading 0.3% higher at around 1,351 above the range of the last two days. Some analysts characterized the intraday move up in gold, among the risk-on mood, as “impressive” while some other analysts called it “technical buying”. 

It is a very good week for US stocks as corporate earnings are showing huge gains. The three main American stock indices are breaking above technical levels. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the relative strength of the greenback against a basket of currencies, is trading in the 89.50-89.60 range (virtually unchanged on the day) after staging a strong bullish reversal on Tuesday’s early European session. The market is momentarily sweeping under the rug the geopolitical uncertainties related to Russia, Syria, and China and is more inclined to focus on the stellar revenues’ reports of the US companies.

Gold went as high as 1,375.70 a week ago (April 11) as the US announced it was going to retaliate after Syria allegedly perpetrated a chemical attack near Damascus. However, since then, the yellow metal is consolidating below the April 11 high as the fears of prolonged war with Syria faded and the US sanctions on Russia are for now on hold. 

Gold 4-hour chart

Resistance is priced in at 1,356.83 swing high and at 1,375.70 cyclical high (April 11) while support lies at the 1,350 psychological level and at the 1,337.30 swing low.