U.S. stock market futures fell sharply before the open today, Monday, with the "S&P 500" index down 2.8 percent and the "NASDAQ" index down 5.5 percent amid sharp declines in Asian markets as concerns about a potential recession in the United States grew.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs stated yesterday, Sunday, that they are increasing the likelihood of a recession in the United States by 10 percentage points to 25 percent following last Friday's weaker-than-expected jobs report, deepening concerns about the world's strongest economy.

Gold Rises

Gold prices rose today, supported by fears that the United States is heading toward an economic recession and increasing bets that the Federal Reserve (U.S. central bank) may be forced to adopt an aggressive monetary easing policy.

The safe haven in spot trading increased by 0.14 percent to $2,446.83 per ounce, after having declined by one percent earlier in the session, while U.S. gold futures rose 0.8 percent to $2,488.50.

Data released on Friday showed that job growth in the United States in July fell short of expectations, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.3 percent, indicating potential weakness in the labor market and increasing recession risks.

Bets on a 50 basis point interest rate cut in the United States for September rose to 70 percent, up from 11.5 percent a week ago, according to the CME Group's "Fed Watch" tool.

As for other precious metals, silver in spot trading dropped 0.4 percent to $28.43 per ounce, platinum fell 1.23 percent to $946.10, and palladium decreased by 0.9 percent to $882.09.

Yen at Highest Level in 7 Months

The Japanese yen reached its highest level since mid-January against the dollar at the open in Asia today, continuing the market movements that began last week after weak job data in the United States fueled recession fears and expectations of a larger rate cut from the Federal Reserve.

The job data released on Friday, which followed a series of weak earnings reports from major tech companies and increasing concerns about the Chinese economy, led to a global sell-off in stocks, oil, and high-yield currencies as investors sought safety in cash.

Sell-offs continued today as U.S. Treasury yields fell, stock indices declined, and currency volatility decreased slightly, although they fell against the dollar and the yen.

The safe haven yen was traded at 145.43 against the dollar, while the British pound rose 0.8 percent against the dollar, after reaching its highest level since mid-January at 145.28 in early trading. The euro remained at $1.091, and the dollar index was nearly stable at 103.17, while the Australian dollar traded at $0.6495, down 0.25 percent.