The gold explosion approached 2100 before the weekend, and next week will face many challenges

This Friday (March 1),Gold priceThe market is bracing for a week of big macroeconomic risks as it nears the $2,100 mark, setting a new closing record. Gold could face a big test next week with the release of February's non-farm payrolls report. Meanwhile, markets will be eagerly watching the content of Federal Reserve Chairperson Jerome Powell's two days of testimony to Congress.

Gold neared the $2,100/oz mark on Friday, setting a new closing record as markets brace for a week of significant macroeconomic risks. Spot gold closed at $2082.82/oz, its highest level since late December and rising for a second straight week. The rally began on Thursday and broke through initial resistance at $2,050 after the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation (PCE) showed a modest rise in consumer prices.

In addition, silver ended the week up 1%, with prices recovering above $23 an ounce. Although silver continues to lag in gold's movements, some analysts believe it remains an attractive value investment in a bull market.

The recent disappointing economic data has weakened the dollar, providing room for gold and silver to rise.

Spot gold closed up 1.89% at $2082.82 an ounce.

COMEX April gold futures closed up 2.00% at $2095.70 an ounce.

COMEX May silver futures closed up 2.09% at $23.364 an ounce.

The data showed that the US manufacturing sector fell further in February, with a manufacturing PMI of 52.2 in February, higher than 50.7. The University of Michigan's consumer survey was also weak. Another set of data on Thursday showed that inflation in the United States rose at the slowest annual rate in nearly three years in January, leaving the Federal Reserve's June interest rate cut still under consideration.

Alex Kuptsikevich, senior market analyst at FxPro, pointed out that the rally on Thursday and Friday reaffirmed the strength of gold to break through the 50-day moving average, which is more convincing than the failure to break through a month ago. Although gold has successfully crossed the resistance level of $2,050. The next major resistance level to watch is $2,088. If the rally continues, the market could see significant upside, he said.

Tai Wong, an independent metals analyst in New York, said there was continued buying in the market today on the back of weaker-than-expected data and relatively dovish comments from the Federal Reserve.

Bart Melek, head of commodity strategy at TD Securities, said gold prices could gain some ground on expectations that the Federal Reserve will ease monetary policy in the middle of the year, reducing the opportunity cost of gold.

Some analysts pointed out that gold could face a major test next week with the release of the February non-farm payrolls report. At the same time, the market will be eagerly watching the content of Federal Reserve Chairperson Powell's two days of testimony to Congress.

Forexlive.com's chief currency strategist Adam Button said manyPrecious metals marketPeople believe that when the trend of the dollar turns, the price of gold will rise sharply. On Friday, the price of gold and silver rose by more than 2% during the session as the U.S. economy and the dollar weakened slightly, and the price volatility intensified. If the gold rally continues, it is expected to set an all-time high daily closing price. However, the recent gold market has been impressive because it has moved in the opposite direction to the strengthening of the dollar and the rise in U.S. Treasury yields. Next week, Button is likely to pay more attention to labor market data, as this may have a bigger impact on the dollar.

However, not all analysts are bullish on the outlook for gold. Nicky Shiels, head of metals strategy at MKS PAMP, noted in a note on Thursday that gold's external volatility may be the result of its continued consolidation over the past several months. While momentum may be driving gold prices higher, there is no discernible change in fundamentals at the moment. With holdings in gold and silver in neutral and short positions, respectively, the technically compressed price action, as well as overall sentiment in precious metals, has been drained. In the absence of sufficient data to indicate that deflation is coming to an end, the technical rally may continue, but this does not act as a catalyst for attracting new investor interest. Furthermore, relying solely on physical demand is difficult to move the market, so the market outlook will depend on the bears on paper and the clues provided by the macroeconomy.

This week, 14 analysts participated in the Kitco News gold survey, and no analysts were bearish on the near-term trend of gold. The survey showed that 11 analysts, or 79%, are bullish on gold. Meanwhile, three analysts, or 21%, are neutral.

Data from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) showed that speculators' net long positions in COMEX gold increased by 3,694 contracts to 68,042 contracts in the week of February 27, a new three-week high. In turn, they held 4,143 net short positions in COMEX silver, after holding 5,363 net long positions in the previous week.