The latest Kitco weekly gold survey shows that industry experts are almost unanimously bullish on gold, while retail investor sentiment has returned to optimistic territory after three consecutive weeks of weakened confidence.

A total of 16 analysts participated in the survey, with Wall Street's weeks of pessimism shifting to an almost unanimous bullish consensus. Out of the 16 experts, 15 of them, 94% of the respondents, believe that the gold price will continue to rise this week, while the remaining single analyst, accounting for 6%, holds a neutral view on the short-term outlook for gold. No one thinks predicting a drop in gold price is wise.

At the same time, Kitco's online voting received 159 votes, with the majority of retail investors bullish on the bull market again. 115 (72%) retail investors expect the gold price to rise this week, while only 27 (17%) anticipate a decrease. The remaining 17 individuals (11%) believe the price will consolidate this week.

This week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) held its semi-annual meeting in Washington, D.C. on Monday, while the BRICS+ countries, including the BRICS nations and other members, will hold their annual summit in Russia on Tuesday. The market expects the BRICS countries to announce new members and a new payment system, which could impact the US dollar and gold prices.

Alongside the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty in the Middle East and the upcoming US elections, the market will also focus on the Bank of Canada's interest rate decision on Wednesday, the release of the US October S&P Global Manufacturing and Services PMI on Thursday, weekly initial jobless claims and US September new home sales figures, as well as the final value of the University of Michigan Consumer Confidence Index for October in the US.

Ricardo Evangelista, Senior Analyst at ActivTrades, believes that the current environment is generally favorable for gold. "While it's difficult to pinpoint a single driving factor behind last week's 2% rise in gold prices, several factors are clearly at play," he said. "Geopolitical instability, slow economic growth in key regions, central bank policies shifting towards lower rates, and the recent uncertainty about the US presidential election have all contributed."

Evangelista added, "Rumors of Trump potentially winning the election have further boosted demand for gold, pushing it to historic highs. Faced with the possibility of the Republican candidate winning a second term, the market is turning to gold as the ultimate"Its price has soared to a historic high, closely related to market expectations of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.""

Kevin Grady, President of Phoenix Futures and Options, stated that the trend of gold is consistent with the overall supportive environment that has gradually formed in recent months.

He said: "I think interest rates will fall, I think the price of gold will be higher, I think people are buying on dips, and we are seeing higher lows, which is favorable for the trend. As interest rates fall, people like to participate in this trade. I think we will see higher prices and test around $3000 in the first quarter of next year."

Grady also expects that this week's BRICS summit will be a short-term driving factor for the gold price, as the BRICS declaration may affect the dollar and benefit gold. He said: "Absolutely, this is what is happening, this is why they are trying to get rid of the dollar."

Grady said that the key to understanding if the trend of gold is sustainable is knowing who is driving the price.

He said: "As a trader, when the market fluctuates and we see an increase in open interest, we look at this issue from two perspectives: strong and weak hands. Because if you think there are only speculators in the market, or some funds have just entered the market, once the market falls, they will liquidate those positions. But if it's a central bank, they are strong hands, they won't liquidate when the market falls. Instead, they will buy more." (Strong hands refer to traders with sufficient funds or influence, weak hands are the opposite)

Grady said: "When gold drops $20, $30, those who sell are weak hands. When the market turns against them, they get stopped out and liquidated. But strong hands do not sell, they do not exit. As a trader, this is very important. Who is buying, where is this upward trend coming from, what are their intentions?"

Grady said: "I realize this and say 'central bank-led market'. That's the reason we are bullish in the long term."

FxPro's senior market analyst Alex Kuptsikevich said: "Last week's uptrend continued after the weak US weekly job data on October 10th. The further trend of the Fibonacci pattern indicates that the $2820 area is the next upward target."