Gold jumps as attacks in Paris, Beirut and Baghdad drive demand for shelter

Gold prices jumped on Monday, as markets reopened in a jittery mood in the wake of a series of suicide bombings and shootings in Paris on Friday night that left more than 130 people dead and Beirut bombings that killed 44 people. Another act of terror happened in Iraqi capital on Sunday which killed at least 7 people and injured 15.

Comex gold for December delivery ticked up $9.8, or 0.91%, to trade at $1,090.80 a troy ounce during European morning hours. It earlier jumped to $1,097.40, the highest since November 6.

December Comex silver was up 0.78% to trade at $14.315 an ounce.

Gains were limited as market players prepared for a hike in interest rates by the Federal Reserve next month.

Gold prices have lost nearly 9% since mid-October as investors recalibrated their expectations of U.S. monetary policy in response to hawkish signals from the Fed.

The terrorist attacks led France to start air strikes in Syria against the Islamic State (ISIS), which claimed responsibility for the attacks. France dispatched warplanes to bomb IS’s nerve center in Raqqa, Syria, and police raided suspects in five French towns, Bloomberg has reported. Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said in an interview with France 2 television that the extremist group, which has also claimed responsibility for blasts in Beirut, Lebanon, and shaking down a Russian passenger jet in Egypt, is urging people based in Belgium “to act on French territory and in other European cities.”

In Beirut, Lebanese security forces have arrested 11 people, mostly Syrians, over last week's bombings in the country's capital city that killed 44 people, an attack whose original target was a hospital, officials said on Sunday.

In Baghdad, a string of blasts on Sunday killed at least seven people and injured 15 others, UPI reported. Two attacks in central Baghdad left three dead, while an improvised explosive device and a car bomb killed two soldiers and two civilians south of the center of the Iraqi capital.

The attacks came two days after police said a suicide bombing at a wedding southwest of the city killed 17 people and injured 35, and as conflict between state and international forces and the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) continues in Anbar province west of Baghdad.

Later Monday, political leaders were expected to discuss ways to intensify the efforts in fighting against terrorism and deal with the migration crisis at the annual summit of the Group of 20 nations (G20) in Belek, Turkey.

The news prompted investors to avoid riskier assets, such as stocks and high yielding currencies, and rush into traditional safe haven assets like gold and the Japanese yen, which is currently trading lower against the dollar impacted by weak Japanese data.

In the week ahead, investors will be awaiting Wednesday’s minutes of the Fed’s latest policy meeting for fresh cues on the prospects of a December rate hike.

Market participants will also be looking ahead to U.S. data on inflation, building permits and manufacturing activity for further hints at the strength of the economy.

Meanwhile, copper prices fell to $2,147 a pound - the lowest level since July 2009 on Monday, before recovering to $2,150 a pound, still down 0.84%.

Prices of the red metal have been down 25% since May as fears of a China-led global economic slowdown frightened investors and hurt sentiment.