GOLD FUTURES LIKELY TO TRADE HIGHER NEXT WEEK

By Zufazlin Baharuddin

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 6 (Bernama) -- The gold futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives is expected to trade higher next week, supported by expectations of a United States (US) Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate cut, which keeps investors drawn to the safe-haven asset.

Signs of a modest slowdown in the latest US data have reinforced market expectations of a rate cut at the Fed’s Dec 9-10 meeting, supported by policy-easing projections from major brokerages.

Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd’s chief economist, Dr Mohd Afzanizam Abdul Rashid, told Bernama that gold prices could hover around US$4,220 to US$4,250 per troy ounce next week. 

Last Friday, trading on Bursa Malaysia’s derivatives market was halted due to a Globex system outage and resumed on Dec 1.

For the period from last Thursday to this Friday, the spot-month December 2025 contract edged higher to US$4,206.10 per troy ounce from US$4,172.60 per troy ounce.

The January 2026 contract strengthened to US$4,221.80 per troy ounce from US$4,188.50 per troy ounce, while February 2026 edged lower to US$4,269.90 per troy ounce from US$4,204.80 a week earlier.

Meanwhile, April 2026 and June 2026 contracts both settled higher at US$4,303.80 per troy ounce versus US$4,204.80 per troy ounce previously.

Weekly trading volume rose to 299 lots from 245 lots last week, while open interest decreased to 148 contracts from 181 contracts a week ago.

Physical gold was priced at US$4,200.60 per troy ounce, according to the London Bullion Market Association afternoon fix on Dec 4, 2025.

-- BERNAMA