黄金与美国乱局：为何只有它看穿了特朗普的危险游戏？

Core Viewpoint - There is a strong belief that gold is responding to the deterioration of U.S. fiscal conditions, economic slowdown, and criticisms of the Federal Reserve by the Trump administration, despite cash flow assets not reflecting these issues [1]. Group 1: Reasons for Gold's Recent Surge - The primary reason for gold's recent surge is the continued weakening of the U.S. dollar, which is inversely related to gold prices as gold is priced in dollars [3]. - Gold's correlation with the VIX index indicates that as market volatility increases, gold prices tend to rise, suggesting that gold benefits from both a weaker dollar and increased stock market volatility [3]. - The significant rise in gold prices from $2000 to over $3500 in the past year and a half cannot be solely attributed to demand from price-sensitive buyers, as the market dynamics have shifted [6]. Group 2: Buyer Dynamics - There are two types of buyers in the gold market: "belief buyers" (such as ETFs, central banks, and speculators) who buy regardless of price based on macroeconomic or risk-hedging views, and "opportunistic buyers" (like households in emerging markets) who buy at favorable prices [6]. - The World Gold Council's second-quarter demand report indicates that "belief buyers," particularly gold ETF investors, have been strong participants in the market this year [6]. Group 3: Market Expectations and Influences - Investors are increasingly moving into gold mining stocks, reflecting expectations of sustained high gold prices, as mining companies' stock prices begin to reflect anticipated future increases in gold prices [9]. - The steepening yield curve, with declining short-term rates and persistently high long-term rates due to inflation concerns, enhances gold's attractiveness as a hedge against risk [11]. - Central banks remain significant buyers of gold, with a long-term trend of increasing purchases, despite a slowdown in reported purchases in the first half of the year [11]. Group 4: Geopolitical and Economic Factors - Recent actions by Trump against the Federal Reserve may encourage other central banks to diversify their holdings away from the dollar and towards gold, as central bank leaders are particularly cautious about the risks of being dependent on the dollar [12].