Gold prices down amid new COVID-19 vaccine hopes

Gold prices fell earlier on Thursday in Asia as investors eyed the surge in U.S. bond yields, a weakened Dollar, and a potential COVID-19 vaccine from Russia.

Gold futures lost 0.08% to $1,947.50 per ounce at 11:19 PM ET (04:19 AM GMT), but still remained above the $1,900 mark.

Bond yields surged and the Dollar saw losses on Thursday as U.S. Congress delayed the decision on the new stimulus deal for a fifth consecutive day. The standstill comes as Democrat and Republican negotiators traded blame for Wednesday’s stalemate, with the latter refusing to budge from an initial $1 trillion offer.

However, investors expressed optimism that gold prices would continue to make leaps and bounds for record highs in the future.

Meanwhile, news of a potential COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday lifted hopes for a global recovery after Russia announced that its first batch of vaccines called Sputnik-V would be ready for delivery in two weeks.