Gold Prices Fall Amid Rate Jitters; Copper Steady as China Stimulus Eyed 
Best Gold Stocks to Buy Now: AABB, GOLD, GDX 
The 10-year Portuguese/German bond yields spread widened to an 11-month high of nearly 380 basis points post dovish FOMC December meeting minutes. Also, the benchmark 10-year Italian/German yield spread widened towards 170 basis points for the first time since shortly after Italy's constitutional referendum.
Yet without a new domestic factor or a pickup in overall risk aversion, we wouldn't see a basis for this spread to widen beyond 17 basis points or so.
Moreover, minutes of the 13 - 14 December FOMC meeting indicated that most participants judged that a gradual pace of rate increases was likely to be appropriate to promote the Committee's objectives of maximum employment and 2 percent inflation (currently expected to be roughly 75 basis points of tightening over the course of 2017).
A gradual pace was also viewed by some participants as likely to be warranted because the proximity of the federal funds rate to the effective lower bound placed constraints on the ability of monetary policy to respond to adverse shocks to the aggregate demand for goods and services.
However, while viewing a gradual approach to policy firming as likely to be appropriate, participants emphasized the need to adjust the policy path as economic conditions evolved. They pointed to a number of risks that, if realised, might call for a different path of policy than they currently expected (highlighting increased uncertainty regarding fiscal and other economic policies). As to be expected policymakers are likely to maintain current views until further details surrounding fiscal policy are revealed.
Lastly, investors will remain keen to focus on the ECB monetary policy meeting, which is scheduled to take place on January 19.
