· Stocks around the world fell sharply on Thursday and investors moved into the yen, gold and other safe-haven assets amid more aggressive talk between the United States and North Korea.
· The Japanese yen hit an eight-week high against the U.S. dollar, and U.S.-traded Nikkei stock futures dropped 2 percent to their lowest since mid May. Spot gold reached a two-month high.
· Rising geopolitical tensions were heightened further when U.S. President Donald Trump warned Pyongyang it should be "very, very nervous" if it even thinks about attacking the United States or its allies, after Pyongyang said it was making plans to fire missiles over Japan to land near the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam.
· The price of gold has risen for the third straight day, reaching a two-month high as another exchange of threats by the United States and North Korea prompted investors to buy bullion as a safe-haven asset.
· The spot gold price had gained 0.6 per cent at $US1,284.71 an ounce by 1.57 pm Thursday EDT (0357 Friday AEST) after reaching its highest level since June 8 at $US1,287.73. It rose 1.3 per cent in the previous session, the biggest increase since mid-May.
· US gold futures for December delivery settled up 0.8 per cent at $US1,290.10.
· "The war of words between the leaders of the US and North Korea continue to dominate investor sentiment," said Forex.com technical analyst Fawad Razaqzada.
"Gold and silver are higher, thanks mainly to their status as safe-haven commodities."
· Another source of support to bullion was data showing US producer prices unexpectedly fell in July, pointing to a further moderation in inflation that could delay a Federal Reserve interest rate increase.
· The market was waiting for US consumer inflation data on Friday that would offer more clues about future Fed decisions.
· UBS said in a note it had increased its long position in gold as forward real interest rates declined and commodity prices increased, while it also added to longs in the platinum group metals as investment demand rose.
· Silver was up 1.1 per cent at $US17.08 an ounce after breaching its 200-day moving average and hitting $US17.24, its highest since June 14.
· Platinum gained 0.8 per cent to $US979.85 per ounce after touching $US983.60, the highest since April 18.
· Palladium climbed 1 per cent to $US900.30.
Reference: Reuters, Business News
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