By Gina Lee
Investing.com – Gold was up on Monday morning in Asia, boosted by the news that U.S. President Donald Trump signed a long-awaited COVID-19 relief bill into law.
Gold futures were up 0.84% at $1,899.05 by 11:23 PM ET (4:23 AM GMT), after jumping 1% earlier. The dollar was down on Monday, also giving the dollar a boost.
Trump signed the $2.3 trillion pandemic aid and spending package, approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate during the previous week, earlier in the day. He had earlier threatened not to sign the bill unless the amount of the stimulus checks is raised to $2000 from the current $600. Congress will vote on the increased amount later in the day.
Trump’s signature averts a partial federal government shutdown and will restore unemployment benefits to Americans who have lost their jobs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The yellow metal has gained more than 24% so far in 2020, largely due to its appeal as a hedge against inflation and currency debasement amid unprecedented global stimulus measures to mitigate the impact of COVID-19.
One central bank debating these measures is the Bank of Japan, where policymakers were divided on how far its stimulus program should be tweaked. Some policymakers called for an overhaul of a strategy aiming for 2% inflation, according to a summary of views voiced during the December rate review.
Bank of Japan policymakers were divided on how far to go in tweaking the stimulus program, with some calling for an overhaul of its strategy for achieving 2% inflation, a summary of views voiced at the December rate review showed.
In Europe, the European Union (EU) began a continent-wide vaccination campaign less than a week after approving BNT162b2, the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech SE (F:22UAy).
The EU also reached a post-Brexit trade deal with the U.K. before Christmas.
However, the number of global COVID-19 cases continues to increase, surpassing 80.7 million as of Dec. 28, according to Johns Hopkins University data. More countries have implemented tighter curbs to fight the new, more infectious B.1.1.7 strain of COVID-19. A second mutant strain of the virus, possibly originating from South Africa, has also been discovered.