Gold Continues Record Run
- Stephen H Akin
- Sep 3
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 19
As we enter September stocks and gold are at all time highs! Over the Labor Day Weekend China's President Xi Jinping convened his Russian and North Korean counterparts in Beijing for the first time on Tuesday, a show of solidarity with countries shunned by the West over their role in Europe's worst war in 80 years.
Gold hit a fresh all-time high as the prospect of US interest-rate cuts boosted the metal’s appeal and traders sought safety following a recent selloff in equity and bond markets.
Bullion climbed as much as 1.1% to top $3,573 an ounce, exceeding Tuesday’s peak. Prices have advanced about 6% over the past seven sessions, underpinned by increased haven demand amid renewed worries over the Federal Reserve’s future and concerns about sovereign debt levels in developed-world countries.
Gold has risen more than a third this year, making it one of the best-performing major commodities. The latest run has been propelled by expectations the US central bank will lower rates this month, after Fed Chair Jerome Powell cautiously opened the door to a cut. A key US jobs report this Friday is likely to show signs of an increasingly subdued labor market, supporting the case for rate cuts. Lower rate environments tend to benefit non-yielding gold.
Industrial Stocks Continue Strength
Remember our post of July 29, 2025 https://www.akininvestment.com/post/industrials-lead-the-market Industrials sector is currently leading U.S. equity market performance in 2025, outpacing all other sectors of the S&P 500 with a year-to-date gain of approximately 15%—over double the increase of the overall index.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent:
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has launched a sharp verbal attack on India, China and Russia, branding them “bad actors” for allegedly fueling Moscow’s war in Ukraine and dismissing the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin as “largely performative.”
His comments were a reminder of the brimming tensions between Washington and New Delhi even as US President Donald Trump escalates a tariff war with India.
Bessent’s warning on India and China
Bessent played down the significance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the SCO summit.
“It happens every year for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. It’s more of the same. And look, these are bad actors … India is fueling the Russian war machine, China is fueling the Russian war machine … I think at a point we and the allies are going to step up,” he said.
Moreover, he confirmed that the Trump administration was considering additional sanctions on Russia after its fresh missile and drone attacks killed at least 17 people in Kyiv, including four children.
Bessent also argued that China would face challenges if excluded from Western markets. “They don’t have a high enough per capita income in these other countries,” he said, pointing to Beijing’s reliance on the US, Europe and English-speaking economies.
SCO summit camaraderie: optics versus reality
The Tianjin summit showcased rare warmth between India, Russia and China. Modi shared hugs and signaling that it has options beyond Washington.
For Modi, the SCO stage was an opportunity to highlight India’s autonomy while pushing back against Pakistan on terrorism and voicing concerns about China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Bessent, however, dismissed the display as superficial. “This is a longstanding meeting … I think it’s largely performative,” he said, echoing Washington’s skepticism of the grouping.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday the Federal Reserve is and should be independent but said it had “made a lot of mistakes” and defended President Trump’s right to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook over allegations of mortgage fraud.
Trump has criticized the Fed and its chair, Jerome Powell, for months for not lowering interest rates, and recently took aim at Powell over a costly renovation of the bank’s Washington headquarters.
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