Precious Metals Talking points 091225: Eeuropean Central Bank meeting; underlying tone may mean rate hikes in 2026 - stonex.com

The ECB floating 2026 rate hike talk feels like posturing when you look at the physical flows. European banks have been net buyers for three straight quarters while their currency weakens against the dollar. Rate hike promises are easy to make 18 months out. Actually delivering them when debt service costs explode is another story. Gold doesn't care about forward guidance anyway. It cares about real rates and currency debasement. The fact that we're holding these levels despite hawkish central bank chatter tells you everything about underlying demand. Physical premiums in Europe remain elevated. Stack accordingly.