Gold surpassed $4,050 per ounce on Wednesday to extend its record as economic uncertainty and a dovish Federal Reserve continued to drive markets away from the dollar toward precious metals. The impasse between members of US Congress maintained the government shutdown in its second week, risking major layoffs for public workers. The shutdown also prevented economic data releases, magnifying the impact of pessimistic data from private sources, including back-to-back contractions on ADP payrolls and contractionary job indices in ISM PMI surveys. Consequently, minutes from the FOMC’s last meeting showed that policymakers are likely to continue cutting rates due to fragility in the labor market. Precious metals were also supported by concerns of sustained inflation, also voiced by the FOMC, which risked a sharper pivot away from dollar-denominated assets. The higher interest in gold drove China to offer custodian services for foreign investors, seizing the pessimism for dollar assets.