Gold prices today, May 18th: Continuing their downward trend.

Domestic gold prices today

Early this morning, domestic gold prices continued their quiet streak, fluctuating within a narrow range. Currently, the price of the precious metal in Vietnam is listed as follows:

In Hanoi and Da Nang, the buying price of SJC gold is 66.5 million VND/ounce and the selling price is 67.12 million VND/ounce. In Ho Chi Minh City, the buying price of SJC gold remains similar to that in Hanoi and Da Nang, but the selling price is 20,000 VND lower.

DOJI branded gold in Hanoi is currently listed at 66.45 million VND/ounce for buying and 67.05 million VND/ounce for selling. In Ho Chi Minh City, the buying price of this branded gold is 50,000 VND higher, but the selling price is similar to that in Hanoi.

Phu Quy SJC gold is currently listed at 66.5 million VND/ounce for buying and 67.1 million VND/ounce for selling. PNJ gold is being bought at 66.55 million VND/ounce and sold at 67.15 million VND/ounce. Bao Tin Minh Chau gold is listed at 66.52 million VND/ounce for buying and 67.08 million VND/ounce for selling.

Domestic gold prices, updated at 5:30 AM on May 18th, are as follows:

Yellow	Area	Early morning of May 17th		Early morning of May 18th			Difference
		Buy	Sell	Buy	Sell		Buy	Sell
		Unit of measurement: million VND/ounce					Unit of measurement: Thousand dong/ounce
DOJI	Hanoi	66.55	67.2	66.45		67.05	-100	-100
DOJI	Ho Chi Minh City	66.55	67.2	66.5		67.05	-50	-100
Phu Quy SJC	Hanoi	66.5	67.1	66.5		67.1	But	But
PNJ	Ho Chi Minh City	66.65	67.2	66.55		67.15	-100	-100
PNJ	Hanoi	66.65	67.2	66.55		67.15	-100	-100
SJC	Ho Chi Minh City	66.55	66.15	66.5		67.1	-50	-50
	Hanoi	66.55	67.17	66.5		67.12	-50	-50
	Da Nang	66.55	67.17	66.5		67.12	-50	-50
Bao Tin Minh Chau	Nationwide	66.55	67.08	66.52		67.08	-30	But

Today's world gold price

World gold prices continued their slight decline early this morning, with spot gold falling $7.2 to $1,981.7 per ounce. June gold futures last traded at $1,984.7 per ounce, down $7.9 from the previous morning.

Global precious metals hit a six-week low under pressure from the rebound in the US dollar. Early this morning, the US Dollar Index, which measures the dollar's fluctuations, rose 0.29% to nearly 103 points. The dollar's recovery has diminished the attractiveness of other currencies for buyers.

Risk appetite among traders and investors strengthened mid-week. Negotiations to extend the US debt ceiling, held on Tuesday afternoon, showed progress. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy moved closer to an agreement to help the US avoid default. Speaker McCarthy stated that the two sides had not yet reached a definitive agreement to lift the debt ceiling, but remained optimistic that "an agreement could be reached by the end of this week." This "economic nightmare" has led Biden to cut short his upcoming trip to Asia in the hope of reaching an agreement before the June 1st deadline.

The market continues to monitor comments made this week by Federal Reserve officials. While there are two opposing viewpoints, traders and investors generally view the officials' remarks as somewhat hawkish. This has supported the US Dollar Index and put pressure on precious metals.

TD Securities experts recently stated that the sell-off in the gold market is almost over and prices are heading towards new all-time highs in the near future. The precious metal has triggered a new long-term buying spree at $1,994 per ounce with a target of $2,150 per ounce.

Bart Melek, head of global commodity strategy at TD Securities, said that gold has been under pressure this past week as market expectations have diverged from the Fed's hawkish stance.

Melek said expectations for a Fed interest rate hike may remain in limbo until the Fed's new dot-pattern chart is released. He noted that gold is strongly supported at around $1,965 per ounce. He also expects gold to reach $2,150 per ounce, but that won't be sustained until the end of the year when the Fed is certain to ease its aggressive monetary policy.

With domestic gold prices fluctuating slightly and the world gold price listed on Kitco at $1,981.7 USD/ounce (equivalent to nearly 56.6 million VND/ounce if converted using the Vietcombank exchange rate, excluding taxes and fees), the difference between domestic and world gold prices is currently over 10 million VND/ounce.

TRAN HOAI

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