XAU/USD touches new 2018 low at $1236 on Friday. Wall Street starts the day slightly higher, struggles to gain traction. US Dollar Index consolidates daily gains after touching 95. After recording modest recovery gains on Thursday, the XAU/USD pair reversed its course on Friday and dropped to its lowest level since December at $1236 as the greenback continued to gather strength. In the second half of the day, however, the pair retraced a portion of its losses and was last seen trading at $1242, where it was still down $5, or 0.4%, on the day. The pair’s price action on Friday seems to be dominated by the greenback valuation. The US Dollar Index, which closed every day of the week in the positive territory, extended its upside to a fresh 2-week high at 95 on Friday. However, the index lost its traction in the early NA session and started to erase its gains, helping the XAU/USD pair pull away from lows. At the moment, the index is up only 0.06% at 94.63. The data from the United States on Friday showed that the preliminary reading of the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index fell to 97.1 to fall short of the market expectation of 98.2. The report highlighted rising concerns about the potential negative impact of the Trump administration’s trade policy on the economy. In the meantime, following mixed earnings reports from big financial institutions in the United States, major equity indexes stay relatively calm during the first half of the session with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 adding 0.3% and 0.15% respectively. If the pair closes the week around where it’s currently trading, it will record its fourth negative closing on a weekly basis in the last five weeks. Technical levels to consider On the upside, the initial resistance aligns at $1256 (Jul. 11 high/20-DMA) ahead of $1265 (Jul. 9 high) and $1278 (50-DMA). On the downside, supports align at $1241/39 (daily low/Jul. 2 low), $1234 (200-WMA) and $1228 (Jul. 16, 2017, low). FX Street FX Street FXStreet is the leading independent portal dedicated to the Foreign Exchange (Forex) market. It was launched in 2000 and the portal has always been proud of their unyielding commitment to provide objective and unbiased information, to enable their users to take better and more confident decisions. View All Post By FX Street FXStreet News share Read Next Fed: Prospective economic conditions call for further gradual removal of monpol accommodation FX Street 5 years XAU/USD touches new 2018 low at $1236 on Friday. Wall Street starts the day slightly higher, struggles to gain traction. US Dollar Index consolidates daily gains after touching 95. After recording modest recovery gains on Thursday, the XAU/USD pair reversed its course on Friday and dropped to its lowest level since December at $1236 as the greenback continued to gather strength. In the second half of the day, however, the pair retraced a portion of its losses and was last seen trading at $1242, where it was still down $5, or 0.4%, on the day. The pair's price action on… Regulated Forex Brokers All Brokers Sponsored Brokers Broker Benefits Min Deposit Score Visit Broker 1 $100T&Cs Apply 0% Commission and No stamp DutyRegulated by US,UK & International StockCopy Successfull Traders 9.8 Visit Site FreeBets Reviews$100Your capital is at risk. 2 T&Cs Apply 9.8 Visit Site FreeBets Reviews$100Your capital is at risk. 3 Recommended Broker $100T&Cs Apply No deposit or withdrawal feesTrade major forex pairs such as EUR/USD with leverage up to 30:1 and tight spreads of 0.9 pips Low $100 minimum deposit to open a trading account 9 Visit Site FreeBets ReviewsYour capital is at risk. 4 T&Cs Apply Visit Site FreeBets ReviewsYour capital is at risk. 5 Recommended Broker $0T&Cs Apply Trade gold, silver, and platinum directly against major currenciesUp to 1:500 leverage for forex trading24/5 customer service by phone and email 9 Visit Site FreeBets ReviewsYour capital is at risk.