Gold and oil prices both fell ahead of Jackson Hole; Bank of Korea hiked interest rates by 25 basis points

Oil prices fell on Thursday for the first time this week. US oil was down 50 cents at $67.86 per barrel. The US Energy Information Administration reported that the crude oil inventories fell for the third consecutive week. Oil prices rose by 10% after this announcement on Wednesday. However, investors are getting cautious today probably because of the rising COVID infections globally, which will inevitably lead to lower consumption of gas.

The gold price was also down during today’s session, as the market remains cautious before the Fed’s Jackson Hole symposium. During its previous session, gold futures fell by 0.7%, the biggest one-day loss in more than two weeks.

The Fed will soon shed some light on its policy direction. However, other central banks have already acted more quickly. Bank of Korea hiked its interest rate today. The rate rose by 25 basis points to 0.75%. BoK is so far the first central bank in Asia to raise interest rates.