Gold Price Today Singapore: Why Gold Fell About 5% in a Week

By Fazil Thaha, Faz Gold

Gold has fallen about 5 percent in just over a week. Spot gold was around USD 4,381 per troy ounce on the morning of 18 September (New York time), according to Fortune, and slid to about USD 4,149 per troy ounce on 28 September, its lowest level since 5 August, according to USAGOLD. If you have been checking the gold price today in Singapore, this is why the numbers look lower than they did last week.

In this article I explain, in plain words, what happened, why the price fell, and what it means if you are buying, holding or selling gold or silver in Singapore. I will not tell you whether to buy or sell, and nobody can promise where the price goes next.

What happened to the gold price

Here are the key moves, all in US dollars per troy ounce (a troy ounce is the standard weight used for gold, about 31.1 grams):

  • 18 September: about USD 4,381 at 6.45am New York time (Fortune).
  • 21 September: about USD 4,360 at 9am New York time (Fortune).
  • 24 September: spot gold at about USD 4,265, down 0.48 percent on the day (Kitco).
  • 28 September: about USD 4,149, down USD 136.59 or 3.19 percent in a single day, a seven week low (USAGOLD).
  • 29 September: a small bounce, with spot gold at about USD 4,172 in the evening, up 1.42 percent on the day (Kitco).

From 18 September to 28 September, that is a drop of about 5.3 percent. Yahoo Finance reported a similar 5.3 percent fall over one week for US gold futures (a futures price is simply a price agreed today for gold delivered later, and it moves almost in step with spot gold). Looking back one month, the fall is larger, roughly 10 percent, because Fortune put gold at about USD 4,609 per troy ounce a month earlier.

Silver has also dropped. USAGOLD recorded silver at about USD 61.53 per troy ounce on 28 September, down 4.31 percent that day, compared with about USD 67 on 18 September according to Fortune. We covered why silver often moves faster than gold in our recent silver price article.

Why is gold going down?

There is no single cause. Three things came together, and they are linked to each other.

1. Oil prices jumped

Tension between the United States and Iran came back into the news. USAGOLD reported that crude oil climbed toward USD 106 a barrel after President Trump rejected Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, an important shipping route for oil. When oil gets more expensive, the cost of transport and many everyday goods tends to rise. That makes people worry about inflation, which simply means prices going up across the economy.

2. Markets expect US interest rates to rise again

The US central bank, the Federal Reserve (often called the Fed), usually raises interest rates to fight inflation. On 28 September, the chance of another Fed rate rise in October was about 70 percent, according to the CME FedWatch tool as reported by USAGOLD. We wrote about the Fed's last move in why gold slipped after the Fed hike.

3. Bond yields went up

A bond yield is the interest you earn for lending money to a government. Kitco reported that the US 10 year yield approached 5.25 percent on 28 September. Gold does not pay any interest. So when safe government bonds pay more, some big investors sell gold and move their money into bonds. That selling pushes the gold price down.

It is worth saying clearly: USAGOLD described this as a repricing in the paper market, driven by interest rates and bond yields, and not by people suddenly wanting less physical gold.

Why did gold bounce a little on 29 September?

Kitco reported that softer US data helped gold recover part of the loss. US job openings for August fell to 7.079 million, below expectations, and US consumer confidence dropped to 81.9, its lowest since 2014. A senior Fed official, John Williams, said there was no need for urgency, and the chance of an October rate rise fell from about 71 percent to about 52 percent. One good day does not mean the fall is over, and one bad day does not mean it will continue. Prices can move either way.

What this means for Singapore buyers

FAZ Gold's live prices follow the world gold and silver market. So when the world price falls, our selling prices and our buyback prices fall with it. That is why the prices on our website and at the counter are lower this week than they were last week.

I will not convert the US dollar prices above into Singapore dollars here, because any converted figure would not match what you actually pay or receive. For the real local price, please check the live SGD prices on fazgold.com.sg or ask us at the counter. Those prices already include our premium, which is the small amount above the raw metal price that covers making, shipping and selling the bar.

Three free tools can help you right now. All of them are free to use, with no fee, no sign up and no obligation to buy or sell.

  • Gold Rate Alert. If you are waiting for a particular price, set a gold price alert for Singapore. Choose BUY or SELL, pick a product, enter your target price in SGD, and we email you once when our live price reaches it. Prices are checked every 10 minutes.
  • What Can I Buy. If you have a budget in mind, the What Can I Buy calculator shows which gold and silver bars in stock fit your budget, how many you can get, and which gives the best value per gram, at our live selling prices.
  • Sell Calculator. If you already own bars, the sell gold calculator shows the live payout per bar before you come in. You can also see our gold buyback rates. The buyback price means the price we pay you when you sell to us.

You can find all our tools in our guide to the free gold tools, or browse gold bars, silver bars and silver coins to see current prices.

A practical word from the counter

When prices fall quickly, some customers rush in and others freeze. Both are normal. My advice is simply to make decisions based on your own plan and budget, not on one week of headlines. If you are unsure, set a Gold Rate Alert and let the price come to you, or use the What Can I Buy tool to see exactly what your budget gets today. Both are completely free.

Visit FAZ Gold

Our counter is at 10 Jalan Besar, #B1-19/20, Sim Lim Tower, Singapore 208787. We are open daily from 10.30am to 8pm. Call us on +65 6209 1448 if you have any questions.

Sources

This article is for general information and market commentary only and is not financial or investment advice.

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