**Gold Price Volatility** In December, Russia’s S&P Global Services PMI rose slightly to 52.3 from 52.2 the previous month. This indicates growth in the country’s service sector. Market activities involve various currency pairs and commodities. The AUD/USD pair traded around 0.6700 with a focus on FOMC minutes, while NZD/USD showed a weak recovery above 0.5800. Additionally, the GBP/USD pair returned to 1.3500 during year-end trading, and silver prices are expected to rise sharply by the end of 2025. Gold was priced near $4,350, recovering from a 4.5% drop caused by higher margin requirements. The crypto market in 2025 displayed volatility but was positively affected by U.S. regulatory changes and asset tokenization. The economic outlook for 2026-2027 in developed countries looks promising, with expectations of strong performance. Reports highlight the best brokers for 2025, focusing on low spreads and high leverage in regions like Mena and Latam. FXStreet shares forward-looking insights but warns of potential risks and uncertainties. Readers should do their research before making investment decisions and take full responsibility for any losses. **Market Sentiment and Trading Strategies** We are currently in a low holiday trading period, which means that large orders can have a bigger impact on markets. The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is around 17, indicating caution among traders as we approach 2026. This environment suggests that using options to manage risk on new positions is a smart strategy. All eyes are on the upcoming release of the Federal Reserve’s December meeting minutes. During that meeting, the “dot plot” of rate predictions showed notable disagreement among members, making these minutes key to understanding the 2026 outlook. With the federal funds rate stable at 3.75% for the past three months, any indication of a more aggressive stance could lead to a sharp rise in the US Dollar. Gold’s recent volatility, including a 4.5% drop and subsequent rebound to near $4,350, reflects a jittery market. The sharp decline resulted from increased margin requirements, which forced many speculative long positions to liquidate. This situation presents an opportunity for traders to sell out-of-the-money puts to earn rich premiums, betting that the worst of the selling is over. Silver has shown impressive year-end gains, outpacing gold in the last quarter of 2025. The gold-to-silver ratio has decreased from over 85 in September to nearly 70 now, indicating a renewed investor appetite for precious metals. We expect this trend to continue, making long silver futures or call options an appealing trade compared to gold. Currency pairs such as EUR/USD and GBP/USD are stuck in narrow ranges, and we do not anticipate a major breakout until trading volumes increase in January. In terms of options pricing, one-month implied volatility for EUR/USD has dropped to a six-week low of 5.5%, suggesting that the market expects this quiet period to persist. Traders could use strategies like iron condors to profit from this sideways trend. Russia’s slight increase in services PMI to 52.3 suggests some stability, but geopolitical issues remain the main influence on related assets. European natural gas futures for February have risen by 4% in the past week due to renewed supply concerns related to Ukraine. This ongoing tension affects the Euro and supports the need for protective positions against sudden market downturns. Create your live VT Markets account and start trading now.

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