If you trade gold or even just keep an eye on it, there’s a big change coming this week you need to know about.
The April gold futures contract is set to expire this Friday. And that means we’re heading into what traders call “contract rollover.”
Now, if you don’t trade futures, this might sound like “inside baseball.” But trust me, it matters.
Why Contract Rollover Matters
In futures trading, each contract has an expiration date. As we get closer to that expiration, traders shift from the expiring contract (April, in this case) into the next active one (June).
But here’s the part that’s worth watching:
There’s currently a $30 difference between the April and June contracts.
That’s not “nothing.”
As we get closer to Friday, that spread is going to collapse. And when that happens, you often get a pretty decent move in the gold market.
That’s because a lot of traders don’t want to be caught holding the bag on an expiring contract, especially if they don’t want delivery. (each futures contract is essentially a contract to receive a certain amount of ounces of physical gold)
So they exit or roll their positions, which can lead to a spike in volume and price movement.
In other words, this isn’t just a “paperwork” event. It’s a real, tradable moment that can create opportunity — or shake out the weak hands.
What to Watch
If gold futures (ticker /ES) starts to push up toward that June contract price, it could act like a magnet.
And if you don’t trade futures, watch GLD — the gold ETF. It often mirrors the movement in futures closely, and it’s a great way to track what gold is really doing.
Bottom line: gold’s holding strong, and with contract rollover on deck, we could see another big move soon.
I just covered this and more in my free bi-weekly Market Radar session:
Click here to watch the full episode!
Stay sharp,
—Geof Smith
P.S. One recession indicator just went nuts. And THIS asset could benefit bigtime!
