Happy Friday, traders. Welcome to our weekly market wrap, where we take a look back at these last five trading days with a focus on the market news, economic data, and headlines that had the most impact on gold prices and other key correlated assets—and may continue to in the future.

So, what kind of week has it been?

Here’s what you need to know:

Gold slipped below $4,000/oz on Thursday night before buyers repeatedly pushed it back above that psychological level on Friday. Rebounds remained limited near $4,025.
An energy-price surge, with Brent near $115/barrel and WTI above $100/barrel, reinforced expectations that interest rates could rise and stay elevated longer.
Lower-than-expected weekly jobless claims, a stronger US Dollar, and a tech-led stock selloff added pressure to non-yielding gold.
Next week brings Wednesday’s FOMC decision, followed by the PCE inflation reading and the first estimate of Q3 US GDP.

So, What Kind of a Week Has It Been?

The penultimate week of October has brought a real test of investors’ resolve in the gold market. Despite showing some promise of consistency this time last week, spot prices slid steadily lower from Monday, breaking through expected levels of both technical and fundamental support until Thursday night’s trading saw a break below the major psychological level of $4,000/oz. As of midday Friday, the precious metal has seen an influx of support below that line and repeatedly snapped back above it. But these rebounds haven’t amounted to much more, as prices have so far been unable to reach escape velocity and travel much farther than $4,025.

Oil Surge Reinforces Higher-for-Longer Rate Fears

With this week’s very sparse macroeconomic calendar and FOMC officials in a “silent period” ahead of next week’s Fed meeting, the primary thing we have learned is that the gold market continues to be dominated by expectations for monetary policy in response to renewed inflation pressures, and far less so by inflation itself. This is despite the shift we believed might have been beginning last week. Driven by continued tension around key shipping lanes in the Middle East, Brent crude oil prices soared to a five-month high of nearly $115/barrel this week, while West Texas Intermediate crude finally broke above $100/barrel. Analysts and traders are clearly interpreting this as just a waystation and not the peak of the energy price crunch, and investors are positioning themselves for interest rates to be pushed higher in the near to medium term and held there for longer, even if the FOMC ultimately decides to forgo a hike next week.

Jobless Claims and a Tech Selloff Add Pressure

This momentum against gold was built further on Thursday by two additional developments. First, the US Department of Labor reported weekly jobless claims lower than expected. In a vacuum, the difference between 200,000 (expected) and 194,000 (actual) is relatively inconsequential, but with the market already heatedly debating the Fed’s next move, the implication that the US labor market may be better able to absorb the shock of higher rates landed sharply, pushing the Dollar higher and continuing to drag on gold’s appeal as a non-yielding asset. Later the same day—very possibly due in part to these same factors—the US stock market suffered an aggressive selloff, particularly in the tech sector; the Nasdaq led all major indexes lower with a 2% loss on the day. This looked, from most angles, like a fast flight to cash, which accelerated the Dollar’s rally at the expense of gold as an alternative safe-haven trade.

Looking Ahead

Next week may well set the tone for the remainder of the gold market’s 2026, with a closely watched FOMC decision coming on Wednesday, followed shortly by the PCE Price Index assessment of inflation and the first estimate of the US economy’s Q3 GDP.

In the meantime, traders, I hope you can get out and safely enjoy your weekend for the next couple of days. After that, I’ll see you back here next week for another market recap.