SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR, SUPPORTED BY RISK AVERSION AND INTEREST RATE CUTS BY MULTIPLE CENTRAL BANKS, THE GOLD MARKET HAS PERFORMED REMARKABLY WELL. HOWEVER, AS THE FEDERAL RESERVE'S INTEREST RATE DECISION THIS MONTH IS ABOUT TO BECOME THE FOCUS OF MARKET ATTENTION, THE GOLD PRICE MARKET WILL ALSO ENTER A CRITICAL PERIOD.IN THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR, THE INTERNATIONAL GOLD PRICE ROSE BY OVER 8%. ON JULY 9TH, THE MOST ACTIVELY TRADED AUGUST GOLD FUTURES ON THE NEW YORK MERCANTILE EXCHANGE ROSE BY $0.5 FROM THE PREVIOUS TRADING DAY, CLOSING AT $1400.5 PER OUNCE, AN INCREASE OF 0.04%.ANALYSTS BELIEVE THAT THE CURRENT RISE IN GOLD PRICES IS MAINLY DUE TO THE UNCERTAIN GLOBAL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK, WHICH HAS LED TO AN INCREASED WILLINGNESS OF CENTRAL BANKS TO REDUCE THEIR HOLDINGS OF US DOLLAR ASSETS AND STRENGTHEN RESERVE DIVERSIFICATION. IN ADDITION, MANY COUNTRIES HAVE ENTERED THE INTEREST RATE CUT CHANNEL, WHICH HAS ALSO BOOSTED THE DEMAND FOR GOLD IN THE CAPITAL MARKET.CENTRAL BANKS OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES HAVE ALWAYS BEEN THE MAIN BUYERS IN THE GOLD MARKET. ACCORDING TO DATA FROM THE WORLD GOLD COUNCIL, THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF GOLD PURCHASED BY CENTRAL BANKS IN THE PAST FOUR QUARTERS WAS 715.7 TONS, REACHING A HISTORIC HIGH. AMONG THEM, IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF THIS YEAR, THE TOTAL PURCHASE AMOUNT OF CENTRAL BANKS IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES INCREASED BY 68% YEAR-ON-YEAR. THE ASSOCIATION BELIEVES THAT THE DEMAND FOR DIVERSIFIED RESERVES AND SAFE, LIQUID ASSETS IS THE MAIN DRIVING FORCE FOR GLOBAL CENTRAL BANK PURCHASES.THE ANALYST TEAM OF MONTREAL BANK CAPITAL MARKETS IN CANADA STATED THAT MULTIPLE MACROECONOMIC HEADWINDS HAVE STRENGTHENED THE DEMAND FOR CENTRAL BANKS TO SHIFT FROM US DOLLAR ASSETS TO DIVERSIFIED ASSETS, AND IT IS EXPECTED THAT THIS YEAR WILL BE A "BIG YEAR" FOR CENTRAL BANK PURCHASES.IN ADDITION, THE LOOSE MONETARY POLICY SIGNALS RECENTLY RELEASED BY THE FEDERAL RESERVE AND THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK ARE ALSO POSITIVE FOR THE RISE IN GOLD PRICES. THE FEDERAL RESERVE ANNOUNCED AFTER THE LAST MONETARY POLICY MEETING THAT IT WILL TAKE APPROPRIATE MEASURES TO MAINTAIN THE EXPANSION OF THE US ECONOMY. EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK PRESIDENT DRAGHI ALSO STATED LAST MONTH THAT IF THE ECONOMIC OUTLOOK DOES NOT IMPROVE, ADDITIONAL STIMULUS MEASURES MAY BE TAKEN.ALISTAIR HEWITT, HEAD OF MARKET INTELLIGENCE AT THE WORLD GOLD COUNCIL, SAID THAT THE SUSPENSION OF CENTRAL BANK TIGHTENING AND POTENTIAL POLICY EASING ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ATLANTIC WILL PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR GOLD PRICES. THE UBS ANALYST TEAM ALSO POINTED OUT THAT THE CONTINUOUS DECLINE IN INTEREST RATES IS AN IMPORTANT FACTOR SUPPORTING GOLD PRICES.THE CHICAGO MERCANTILE EXCHANGE'S FORECAST SHOWS THAT THE MARKET BELIEVES THE PROBABILITY OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE CUTTING INTEREST RATES BY 25 BASIS POINTS AFTER ITS MONETARY POLICY MEETING AT THE END OF JULY HAS EXCEEDED 95%. UNDER THE STRONG EXPECTATION OF INTEREST RATE CUTS, THE MOST IMPORTANT CONCERN FOR GOLD MARKET INVESTORS AT PRESENT IS THE SPEECH THAT FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIRMAN POWELL WILL GIVE AT THE HEARING OF THE HOUSE FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE ON THE 10TH.QINTAN KARNANI, CHIEF MARKET ANALYST AT BADGE CONSULTING, STATED THAT POWELL'S STANCE ON INTEREST RATES WILL DETERMINE THE DIRECTION OF THE GOLD, SILVER, AND US DOLLAR INDICES THIS MONTH.