WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned yesterday the pandemic was "not even close to being over" and was actually speeding up.

However US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell has provided a note of optimism.

In his testimony to be presented to a US House of Representatives committee today, Powell welcomed a bounce-back in economic activity but said the virus had to be kept in check.

"We have entered an important new phase and have done so sooner than expected," he said.

North American and European indices closed up yesterday while Australasian markets finished lower.

The gold price is similar to this time yesterday, around US$1,770 an ounce on the spot market.

Gold equities had another good day in Toronto, where Alaska-focused Freegold Ventures (TSX: FVL) touched another one-year high, as did Marathon Gold (TSX: MOZ) and explorer Auryn Resources (TSX: AUG).

Elsewhere, Rio Tinto gained 0.1% in London, Barrick Gold rose 1.2% in Toronto and BHP was up about 0.9% in morning Australian trade.