Investezo › Gold years › 2018
Gold (XAUUSD) in 2018: daily moves, range and the biggest days
2018 was one of the 5 calmest years for gold between 2005 and 2024. Gold closed the year down 1.75% at US$1,279.48. Its median daily range was 0.879%, about US$11.21, and it moved 2% or more on 1 of 258 days.
Key numbers
| Trading days counted | 258 |
| Year change (last close vs last close of 2017) | -1.75% |
| Last close of the year (31 Dec 2018) | US$1,279.48 |
| Median daily move (close to close, either way) | 0.349% |
| Median daily range (high to low) | 0.879% · US$11.21 |
| Days with a move of 1% or more | 29 |
| Days with a move of 2% or more | 1 |
| Days with a move of 3% or more | 0 |
| Days with a move of 5% or more | 0 |
| Up days / down days | 127 / 130 |
The biggest days
| Date | Move | US$ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best day | 11 Oct 2018 | +2.58% | US$30.79 |
| Worst day | 15 May 2018 | -1.7% | -US$22.36 |
| Widest high-low range | 14 Feb 2018 | 2.87% | US$38.20 |
How 2018 compares with 2005–2024
| 2018 | Median of 20 years | Rank (1 = highest) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median daily range % | 0.879% | 1.25% | 20th of 20 |
| Days with 2%+ moves | 1 | 11.5 | 19th of 20 |
| Largest one-day move | 2.58% | 4% | 17th of 20 |
| Median daily range in US$ | US$11.21 | – | 18th of 20 |
Weekend gaps in 2018
Gold had 51 weekend gaps in this data in 2018. The median gap was 0.055% either way. 0 gaps were 0.5% or more and 0 were 1% or more; 31 opened higher and 20 lower. The largest came after Friday 19 Jan 2018: +0.27% (US$3.62).
What these numbers mean for an EA
A 2% move at the 2018 year-end price of US$1,279.48 is about US$25.59. In 2018 gold moved that much or more on 1 days out of 258. A grid or martingale EA that adds trades against the move carries the full move as open loss until price comes back, so the days in the table above are the days its floating drawdown was tested. You can enter a move of this size in the grid calculator to see the open loss for your own lot and spacing, or check a live record against daily and max loss limits with the Prop Firm Rule Check.
Questions
How much did gold move on a normal day in 2018?
The median close-to-close move was 0.349% and the median high-low range was 0.879% (US$11.21).
What was gold's biggest day in 2018?
The best day was 11 Oct 2018 (+2.58%) and the worst day was 15 May 2018 (-1.7%).
Did gold go up or down in 2018?
Down: the last close of 2018 was US$1,279.48, -1.75% against the last close of 2017.