Gold will end the year above $1,800, but the precious metal recorded an annual decline amid a strengthening US dollar and monetary policy normalization. While gold prices did have a strong quarter, they were unable to erased their 2021 losses. Will 2022 be a repeat of 2021?

February gold futures advanced $11.60, or 0.64%, to $1,825.70 per ounce at 13:08 GMT on Friday on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold will post a weekly boost of 0.9%, a one-month jump of 2.3%, and a quarterly increase of about 3.7%. However, gold suffered a 4% drop over the last year.

Silver, the sister commodity to gold, is trying to end the year above $23. February silver futures rose $0.16, or 0.69%, to $23.22 an ounce. The white metal has also performed well in the home stretch of 2021: a 1.5% weekly rally, a 3% monthly increase, and a quarterly gain of 3%. But, once again, silver prices plunged more than 12% in 2021.

Gold had its worst year since 2015, led by a number of factors.

The first noticeable development was the US dollar’s surprise rally this year. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, surged 6.5% to finish the year in the 95.80 to 95.90 range. A stronger buck is typically bad for commodities priced in dollars because it makes it more expensive for foreign investors to purchase.

Although central banks’ appetite for bullion was fierce, investor interest wanedover the last year. The big trend was waning ebullience over the exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

“Right now, gold is moving up slightly, but the total assets of the two funds combined is the lowest since April 2020,” wrote Tom McClellan, technical analyst and editor at the The McClellan Market Report, in a note. “The public is not believing in the up move by gold prices, which of course makes that move more legitimate.”

The Federal Reserve has also been in focus, and will play a huge role in 2022.

The US central bank plans to end its pandemic-era quantitative easing (QE) program by March, with the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) projecting three rate hikes.

A rising-rate environment is generally bearish for gold since it reduces the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion.

Meanwhile, on Friday, the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield is down 0.01% to 1.505%. The one-year bill rose 0.008%, while the 30-year bond slid 0.007% to 1.918%.

Here is a rundown of how the hard metals performed this year: copper climbed 26%, palladium plummeted 23%, and platinum shed 11%.

In other metal commodities on Friday, February copper futures surged $0.0485, or 1.1%, to $4.441 per pound. February platinum futures tumbled $5.60, or 0.58%, to $959.00 an ounce. February palladium futures slumped $98.70, or 4.98%, to $1,884.50 per ounce.