Goldman Sachs released a research report expecting the gold prices to rise to US$2,700 per ounce by year-end.The relative stability of gold prices following last week's better-than-expected US CPI release was yet another evidence that the bull market of metals is not driven by the usual macro factors, according to the explanation in the report. Gold prices have surged by 20% in the past 2 months, despite market expectations of a gradual reduction in the Fed's interest rate cuts, strong economic growth trends and swift stock market performance. The gold price has always been linked to catalysts such as real interest rates, growth expectations and the trend of the USD, but these reasons are no longer sufficient to explain this year's gold price movements, according to the report.