Market Summary (Jul 18, 2025)

We continue to view gold as fundamentally bullish amid lingering Fed uncertainty and mixed U.S. data, with the metal holding above its higher-timeframe support trendline and bumping up against near-term resistance around $3,350. While short-term chop may persist without a fresh catalyst, a decisive breakout would reinforce the medium-term uptrend. Crypto remains in a favorable macro regime, led by Bitcoin, and we see a combined allocation to gold and Bitcoin as the optimal risk-reward mix heading into upcoming U.S. retail sales and Fed commentary.