Category: 3. Business

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‘Parents deserve the truth’

Gold (GC=F) futures opened at $3,382.40 per ounce on Monday, up 1.4% from Friday’s close of $3,336. In August, the gold futures price has ranged from $3,281 to $3,477.

On Friday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will give a policy speech at the annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium. Investors will watch closely for clues on Powell’s willingness to cut interest rates at the Fed’s next meeting in September. President Donald Trump has pressured Powell to lower interest rates, but Powell has resisted — arguing that more information is needed to understand how tariffs will impact prices. Economic data in recent months has indicated a slowing labor market and inflation above the Fed’s target of 2%. The latest Producer Price Index also showed a rise in services prices, which are not affected by tariffs.

Falling interest rates can benefit gold since it does not pay interest. However, signs of a slowing economy could also increase gold demand if investors move into safe-haven assets.

The opening price of gold futures on Monday is up 1.4% from Friday’s close of $3,336 per ounce. Monday’s opening price is nearly flat with the opening price of $3,383.90 one week ago on August 11. In the past month, the gold futures price has gained 1.3% compared to the opening price of $3,338.20 on July 18, 2025. In the past year, gold is up 37.9% from the opening price of $2,453.50 on August 16, 2024.

24/7 gold price tracking: Don’t forget you can monitor the current price of gold on Yahoo Finance 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Want to learn more about the current top-performing companies in the gold industry? Explore a list of the top-performing companies in the gold industry using the Yahoo Finance Screener. You can create your own screeners with over 150 different screening criteria.

Investing in gold is a four-step process:

1. Set your goal

2. Set an allocation

3. Choose a form

4. Consider your investment timeline

The first step to investing in gold is understanding your goals for buying it.

Given gold’s historic behavior, three suitable investing goals for a gold position are:

1. Diversification into an asset that moves independently from stock prices

2. Protection against inflation-related loss of purchase power

3. Backup source of value and wealth in an unlikely economic collapse

Gold has long been part of a balanced portfolio given its ability to hold its value – or even increase further – when the value of other assets is falling. That is why investors utilize gold as a stabilizer. Investors rely on gold’s strength in tough times to limit unrealized losses in equities and inflation-related reductions in purchasing power of cash deposits. That’s exactly what we’re seeing play out now before our eyes.

Gold is also a widely recognized store of value. As such, the precious metal can potentially stand in as a medium of exchange if the dollar collapses.

“I recommend that everyone buy a little gold as a hedge against calamity,” said Scott Travers, author of The Coin Collector’s Survival Manual and editor of “COINage” magazine, in an interview with Bottom Line, Inc. Gold “should be viewed as an insurance policy,” he said.

Learn more: How to invest in gold in four steps

Whether you’re tracking the price of gold since last month or last year, the price-of-gold chart below shows the precious metal’s steady upward climb in value.

Historically, gold has shown extended up cycles and down cycles. The precious metal was in a growth phase from 2009 to 2011. It then trended down, failing to set a new high for nine years.

In those lackluster years for gold, your position will negatively impact your overall investment returns. If that feels problematic, a lower allocation percentage is more appropriate. On the other hand, you may be willing to accept gold’s underperforming years so you can benefit more in the good years. In this case, you can target a higher percentage.

The precious metal has been in the news lately, and many analysts are bullish on gold. In May, Goldman Sachs Research predicted gold would reach $3,700 a troy ounce by year-end 2025. That would equate to a 40% increase for the year, based on gold’s January 2 opening price of $2,633. Rising demand from central banks, along with uncertainty related to changing U.S. tariff policy, are the factors driving the increase.

If you are interested in learning more about gold’s historical value, Yahoo Finance has been tracking the historical price of gold since 2000.

The Swiss watchmaker Swatch has apologised and removed an advert featuring a model pulling the corners of his eyes, after the image prompted accusations of racism and calls for a boycott on Chinese social media.

Internet users heavily criticised the “slanted eye” gesture made by the Asian male model as racist.

In a post on Instagram and the Chinese social media platform Weibo on Saturday, Swatch acknowledged the “recent concerns regarding the portrayal of a model” in the advert and said it had deleted the promotional material worldwide.

“We sincerely apologise for any distress or misunderstanding this may have caused,” the company wrote.

Many online were not content with the company’s response and continued to call for a boycott of Swatch Group brands, which include Blancpain, Longines, and Tissot.

A Weibo user with more than 1 million followers accused the company of “racism against Chinese” and suggested it should be punished by regulators.

Others accused Swatch of deliberate discrimination and urged consumers to boycott the company.

“The brand’s image has collapsed. (Swatch) thinks they can just apologise and salvage everything? It’s not that simple,” another user wrote.

China is one of Swatch Group’s biggest markets but, along with many other western luxury brands, it has struggled to maintain growth as the world’s second-largest economy has slowed and consumers have shifted to more affordable brands.

In July, the group reported an 11.2% drop in net sales for the first six months of the year. It said the slump was “exclusively attributable” to sluggish demand in China.

Swatch is not the first foreign brand to face accusations of racist advertising in China.

The Italian luxury fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana was criticised in 2018 after it posted promotional videos showing a Chinese model awkwardly using chopsticks to eat Italian food.

In 2023, the French brand Dior also caused outrage with an advertisement showing a model pulling up the corner of her eye.

The Rupee on Monday appreciated by 05 paisa against the US Dollar in the interbank trading and closed at Rs 282.01 against the previous day’s closing of Rs 282.06.
 
However, according to the Forex Association of Pakistan (FAP), the buying and selling rates of the dollar in the open market stood at Rs 283.5 and Rs 284.5, respectively.
 
The price of the Euro decreased by Rs 0.30 to close at Rs 329.28 against the last day’s closing of Rs 329.58, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
 
The Japanese yen came down by 01 paisa and closed at Rs 1.91, while the exchange rate of the British Pound witnessed a decrease of 53 paisa to close at Rs 381.83 against the last day’s closing of Rs 382.36.
 
The exchange rates of the Emirates Dirham and the Saudi Riyal decreased by 01 paisa each and closed at Rs 76.78 and Rs 75.16, respectively.

Indian bonds fell by the most in almost two years, as optimism from last week’s credit rating upgrade was overshadowed by fiscal concerns over the government’s plan to cut consumption taxes.

Yields on benchmark 10-year notes rose 10 basis points to 6.50% on Monday, the most since October 2023. That erased a decline of eight basis points on Thursday, driven by S&P Global Ratings’ upgrade. Indian markets were shut on Friday for a public holiday.

U.S. stock futures are ticking lower after indexes posted gains for a second straight week; U.S.-listed shares of Novo Nordisk (NVO) are rising in premarket trading after its weight-loss drug Wegovy was approved to also treat liver disease; shares of Dayforce (DAY) are soaring on a report Thoma Bravo is in talks to acquire the HR software firm; Winklevoss twins-owned Gemini becomes the latest crypto firm to file for an IPO; and meme stock Opendoor (OPEN) continues to climb. Here’s what investors need to know today.

1. US Stock Futures Edge Lower

U.S. stock futures are ticking lower after indexes finished higher for a second straight week. Investors are looking ahead this week to key remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and a string of retailer earnings reports. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are 0.1% lower after the blue-chip index closed the prior week just 68 points away from a new record high. S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures also are edging lower after those indexes ended a positive week on a down note Friday. The 10-year Treasury note yield is lower. Oil and gold futures are higher. Bitcoin (BTCUSD) is down more than 2% at around $115,000.

2. Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy Approved for Treatment of MASH Liver Disease

Novo Nordisk (NVO) won approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Wegovy weight-loss drug to be used for treatment of noncirrhotic metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) liver disease. MASH affects one in three people who are overweight or obese, Novo Nordisk said, including 22 million Americans. U.S.-listed shares of Novo Nordisk, which plunged late last month when the company cut its outlook and announced a new CEO, are 4% higher in premarket trading.

3. Dayforce Stock Soars on Report HR Software Firm May Be Acquired

Shares of Dayforce (DAY) are surging more than 25% after a report that private equity firm Thoma Bravo is in talks to acquire the human resource software firm. Bloomberg said a deal to take the Minneapolis-based company private “could be announced as soon as the coming weeks.” Shares of Dayforce entered Monday down 27% this year.

4. Winklevoss Twins’ Crypto Platform Gemini Files for IPO

Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini Space Station, which is owned by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, has filed for an initial public offering (IPO). The platform features trading in 150 cryptocurrencies, including its own Gemini dollar (GUSD) stablecoin. It intends to list on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker “GEMI.”  It’s the latest in a string of IPOs for cryptocurrency firms, with stablecoin provider Circle Internet Group (CRCL) and crypto exchange Bullish (BLSH) having had successful debuts.

5. Opendoor Rises Further as Investors Buy Into Meme Stock

Meme stock Opendoor Technologies (OPEN) shares are up 3% in premarket trading, extending their recent run. The online home-buying company’s stock rose more than 4% Friday following news that its CEO and chair would step down. Recent enthusiasm for the stock has been driven by meme-stock traders and encouraged by a highly bullish money manager, helping drive action as traders to dip into riskier corners of the market.