Volatile start to year for gold and oil

In December, the price of gold moved through a volatile uptrend but did seemingly reject at $1,819. However, a daily candle managed to close above this resistance zone on the last day of 2022, which has been followed by a continuation to the upside at the start of the new year. Although the volatile uptrend pattern appears to remain intact.

Currently, XAU/USD is sitting in the green “buy zone” of the Investing Zone Indicator. The Alma Trend Ribbon included in this indicator is presently blue, further suggesting that gold is bullish at this point. If gold manages to sustain this bullish outlook, $1,900 might be an appropriate pivot point, with $1,940 perhaps as far as a price traders might like to target.

Meanwhile, Crude Oil appears to be in a downward trend, with the price below the pink (bearish) Alma Trend Ribbon. In 2023, the price cratered from ~$80.00 a barrel to as low as ~$73.00, in the first 4 days before consolidating near this low, but not without printing some impressive wicks. This week, crude oil has experienced a small rally to avoid moving deeper into the yellow sell-zone of the Investing Zone Indicator. $76.50 now appears to be a resistance level for oil, so traders might like to watch for further rejections, particularly at $74-$75, before looking for price targets below $73.00 in the days ahead.