US dollar weakens as gold and silver soar – as it happened
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
- Trade war tensions also hit stocks
- US dollar trading at four-month low
- Gold highest since 2011; Silver highest since 2014
- Euro rallies after Covid-19 recovery deal
- Markets fall after Trump’s Covid-19 warning
4.56pm BST
And finally, European stock markets have closed in the red.
The FTSE 100 lost 1%, or 62 points, to 6207 points. France’s CAC shed 1.3%, with Spain down 1.5%.
Recently, the relationship between the two largest economies in the world has been strained because the Chinese government is eroding Hong Kong’s autonomy, and that has attracted the anger of many countries.
Dealers are fearful that today’s development could spark a new escalation in tensions. President Trump has an election to contest in a few months, so he might not be overly aggressive with China for that reason.
Related: Is a China-US ‘rivalry partnership’ possible? | Mohamed El-Erian
4.21pm BST
Precious metals miner Fresnillo’s shares have soared by 10% today, as it benefits from the jump in gold and silver prices.
Fresnillo maintained its guidance for silver production this year, although it did cut its gold production targets as the pandemic has been disrupting operations at some mines.
“Gold is having a tremendous run and although the increase in the price has seen some big rises amongst the Australian Gold juniors , proportionately the UK junior gold stocks have not risen as high or as fast as their Australian cousins.
However, helping to encourage interest in the gold sector generally is the upcoming arrival of Yamana Gold on the LSE, which is well timed for those investors who want exposure to a mid-market player.”