Gold to average $1,050 an ounce in 2016; Silver to average $14 an ounce

UNITED STATES January 14 2016 8:30 PM     

NEW YORK (Scrap Register): BMO Capital Markets looks for a  largely sideways gold market in 2016, forecasting prices will average $1,050 an  ounce. Meanwhile, BMO expects silver to average $14 an ounce, listing a range of  $11.36 to $17.43 an ounce.

This is not far below current levels but down  from $1,160 in 2015, the bank said in its annual commodities outlook published  late Wednesday.

“Gold and silver price expectations are down slightly,  but basically sideways,” BMO said, describing upside and downside risks as  “almost equally conceivable.”

The bank listed three main factors: at  least one more rate hike by the Federal Reserve, a tendency for gold prices to  decline during U.S. election years, and investment demand that is stable but not  incrementally improving.

The bank’s foreign-exchange analysts anticipate  that after the first rate hike in the year, the U.S. dollar may stop reacting  violently to Fed moves.