Gold Slips 1% to $4,044 and Silver to $51.51 as Margin Calls Bite and Goldman Cuts Its Year-End Forecast
Bullion is still set for its best week since late August, but the metal gave back a part of Thursday's gains as oil rebounded, Asia's tech rout drained cash and Fed hike bets stayed near two in three.
Friday, November 6, 2026/2 min read
Gold did what it rarely does in a crisis: it was sold. Spot gold fell 1.1 percent to $4,044.09 an ounce by 05:01 GMT on Friday, and US December futures lost 1.5 percent to $4,053.30, Shafaq News reported, citing Reuters. Silver slipped 0.5 percent to $51.51, platinum 0.3 percent to $1,512.83 and palladium 1.1 percent to $1,020.10. The metals remain on track for a weekly gain, gold's best since late August.
Thursday had looked kinder. Kitco recorded spot gold at about $4,087 late in New York, after an intraday high of $4,148, its highest since 20 October, while silver was near $51.78. The stock market's worst day since April 2025 had not sent investors fleeing into bullion so much as given them a reason to take profits on it.
Why is gold falling when stocks are falling?
Three forces pulled in the same direction, according to the Reuters report. Oil rebounded (Kitco had Brent settling Thursday at $98.29, up 3.88 percent, and WTI at $90.52), which stoked inflation worries and the expectation that interest rates will stay high for longer, and higher rates weigh on a metal that pays no interest. CME FedWatch put the chance of a December Fed hike at 68 percent, down from near certainty last month. And analysts said investors were selling gold to raise cash and cover margin calls elsewhere, as tech-heavy Asian markets fell sharply on fears of regulatory scrutiny and slower AI spending.
Goldman Sachs added to the mood by cutting its end-2026 gold forecast to $4,150 an ounce from $4,650, citing the Fed's more hawkish stance, the report said. That is only slightly above where gold trades now.
Where could gold and silver go next?
The chart reading from FXEmpire, written at 06:40 UTC, leans slightly bearish. For gold it sees support at $4,021.95 and then $3,991.58, with resistance at $4,051.45 and $4,088.51. For silver it sees support at $50.52, then $49.01, and resistance at a $53.11 pivot. Kitco's Thursday levels were similar, with gold support at $4,075 and $3,989 and silver support at $51.24 and $50.03.
The same piece noted that gold ETFs took in $2.7 billion in October, a fourth straight month of inflows, and that the Silver Institute's April forecast pointed to a 46.3 million ounce deficit for 2026, though that is a forecast, not a result.
The immediate catalyst is the US payrolls report at 13:30 GMT. Strong jobs data would reinforce expectations for higher rates and could weigh on gold further, FXEmpire said; a weak report would pull hike bets down and could lift the metal. Kitco also described the dollar as comparatively soft and the 10-year Treasury yield, near 4.82 percent, as its lowest since early September, two supports for gold that Friday's selling has so far outweighed.
Published in The Outspoken Digest
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