After hitting a 3-week high during early morning trading, gold and silver have since conceded those gains and are edging slightly lower. Safe-haven demand for precious metals has been a fixture in the marketplace as of the last few days and will prove to be an important factor for the wider investing world as this week rages on. Violence in Iraq is still catching plenty of attention and is growing in severity with each passing day, or so it seems.

The big piece of news this week is the monthly policy meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. Investors will be paying close attention to the meeting itself as well as what Janet Yellen has to say to media afterwards. As it stands, the investing world is expecting the FOMC to continue its tapering of Quantitative Easing.

Violence In Iraq Spurs Safe-Haven Demand For Metals

For the last two weeks or so, the world’s major news outlets have been reporting bouts of increased violence throughout much of northern Iraq. It seems as though now that US military forces are more or less out of the country entirely, militant groups now have free range to wreak whatever havoc they so choose. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, also known as ISIS, is currently working towards the capital city of Baghdad and has been seen seizing control of key towns all over the country.

Iraqi security forces have struggles to contain these rebel fighters and have been more or less decimated by recent military engagements. Over the weekend it was reported that more than 1,700 Iraqi soldiers were killed by ISIS. Now, with nowhere else to turn, the Iraqi government is pleading with the US to provide some element of military support. The US has not ruled out the possibility of them getting involved in this most recent crisis militarily, but they have yet to commit to anything. Secretary of State John Kerry was quoted earlier this morning as saying he and his colleagues are weighing their current options, one of which is the use of drones against ISIS fighters.

As the stability of Iraq is called into question more and more with each passing hour, investors are beginning to turn more readily to safe-haven gold and silver. As this happens, the metals will pick up valuable momentum that they can hopefully ride throughout the duration of the week. As the next four days come and go, we will continue to keep a close eye on anything and everything happening between ISIS and the wider Iraqi population.