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Phase One Trade Agreement Signing Delayed

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According to Reuters News Service, the long-awaited meeting between President Trump, and the Chinese President Xi Jinping which was originally scheduled to be held this month in Chile has been delayed. The face-to-face meeting between the leaders of these two superpowers was intended to allow them to sign a long-awaited interim (partial) trade deal.

Currently the signing of an interim trade deal could be delayed at least until December of this year. Discussions are underway to finalize the terms of the agreement, as well as the venue in which it will be held at. This all according to a senior official of the Trump administration who spoke on the condition of anonymity with Reuters on Wednesday.

Yesterday it was reported that President Trump suggested that the venue be held in Iowa, and President Xi Jinping suggested the venue be held in Macau. However today the venue choices have expanded considerably to include London, where the two leaders could meet after a NATO summit. This summit will be held on December 3rd - 4th. Other venues under consideration are held in Europe and Asia with Sweden and Switzerland at the top of the list.

According to White House spokesman Judd Deere, “Negotiations are continuing and progress is being made on the text of the phase one agreement. We will let you know when we have an announcement on a signing location.”

According to Reuters an unnamed source briefed them on the talks Tuesday saying that the “Chinese negotiators want Washington to drop 15% tariffs on about $125 billion worth of Chinese goods that went into effect on Sept. 1. They are also seeking relief from earlier 25% tariffs on about $250 billion of imports from machinery and semiconductors to furniture.”

As of 5 PM Eastern standard Time gold futures are trading up $8.30 and currently fixed at $1492 per troy ounce. Today’s gain partially recovered pricing from the strong selloff traders witnessed in gold pricing yesterday. The dollar in essence is trading unchanged and U.S. equities are fairly flat with the Dow Jones industrial average trading unchanged on the day and the S&P gaining fractionally. The exception to this is that the NASDAQ composite which is currently down 3/10 of a percent. Obviously, today’s price changes are the exact opposite from the changes seen in the United States markets yesterday.

On a technical basis today’s recovery in gold indicates that there is major support at $1480 per ounce. The evidence is comprised of a series of lows throughout October that did not breach that price point except for a single occasion. The last time gold traded below $1480 was the last two days of September. The second important technical indicator which indicates a major support level is the 100-day moving average which is currently at $1492. Yesterday’s low fell precisely to that price point. Today’s low occurred at $1483.80, which is slightly below today’s opening of $1484.30.

Wishing you as always, good trading,

Gary S. Wagner - Executive Producer