Gold continues to attract buyers on every meaningful dip, supported by persistent central-bank purchases and lingering geopolitical uncertainty. The question for traders is no longer whether the trend is up, but how to join it without buying the top of a spike.
Three drivers behind the rally
- Central-bank demand: official-sector buying remains well above its pre-2022 average.
- Real yields: falling inflation-adjusted US yields reduce the opportunity cost of holding a non-yielding asset.
- Hedging demand: investors are using gold as portfolio insurance against equity and currency volatility.
Trading gold on a CFD account
One standard lot of XAU/USD equals 100 troy ounces, so a $1 move is worth $100 per lot. That is a lot of exposure for a small account. Most of our clients trade gold in 0.01 to 0.10 lot sizes and use a wider stop than on currency pairs, because gold’s average daily range is far larger in percentage terms.
Strategy: wait for pullbacks to the rising 20-day moving average and look for a bullish reversal candle before entering. Avoid opening new positions in the hour before major US data.