Gold gripped by conflicting forces - BBG

Bloomberg carries a piece on gold-price outlook in the coming months, noting that the outlook for the yellow metal remains divided, with the bear trend descending from record high in 2011 still intact, while higher highs, higher lows signal recent rally may have legs.

Key Points:

Bearish factors:

No incentive to hold the precious metal because equities are climbing to records

Global economy is recovering

Federal reserve is so wary of tight labor markets that it has pledged to increase u.s. interest rates further this year

Bullish factors:

Gold is an appealing hedge as long as Donald Trump's presidency remains mired in controversy and legislative gridlock

And as terrorist attacks and geopolitical tensions heighten risks for other assets