The start of a new month does not bring much volatility to the markets, although seasonally this is one of the weakest months for Wall Street or for gold.
The quiet session is also a result of the absence of Wall Street investors. The U.S. and Canada celebrate Labor Day today and the cash session is not held. Some index and commodity futures are trading on a limited basis (most close at 07:00-07:30 PM BST).
US500 gains 0.15%, while US100 gains 0.20%.
The European session ended on a positive note, although also without much volatility. The DAX went out to new historic highs today, which may have been linked to a rebound in Volkswagen shares, which announced controversial cost-cutting ideas in the form of abandoning car production in Germany.
The U.S. dollar strengthened in the market today against most currencies. It gained most strongly against the yen. The market was buoyed by concerns that strong NFP data on Friday could reduce market expectations for US interest rate cuts.
Gold was steady, while silver lost more than 1%. Gold is trading near $2530, while silver is at $28.5. Gains in palladium and platinum.
Natural gas is up nearly 3% today, despite weather forecasts indicating a marked cooling in the central and eastern states.
Crude oil is trying to rebound, led by good demand data in Asia. Oil imports in Asian countries rebounded noticeably in August, which may be related to the build-up of inventories ahead of the winter season. Production data showed a decline in output in the OPEC+ group. However, the group is expected to start restoring production from October. WTI crude oil is gaining 0.7% and is trading at $74 per barrel.