Gold prices have resumed their bullish trend early on Thursday over worries about the higher number of new coronavirus cases being reported outside of China, even as China – the original epicenter appears to be heading towards controlling the outbreak. At the time of writing, GOLD is trading at a little above $1,650.

The safe haven appeal of gold remains high on account of a significant number of new cases being confirmed in Italy as well as Iran, even as other countries across Europe have reported infections. The CDC has also confirmed the first case of coronavirus via community spread within the US, where the origin of infection remains unclear.

Even though US President Donald Trump maintains that his country remains capable of handling the crisis of a potential coronavirus outbreak, markets traded with high level of uncertainty on fears that it could soon turn into a global pandemic and have a more severe impact on economic growth worldwide. Rising expectations for a rate cut by the Fed have also helped gold prices climb higher, with markets also anticipating that other central banks like the ECB and the BOE could also ease their monetary policies in the wake of this crisis.