Gold prices firm as US delays decision on ME involvement
NEW YORK: Gold prices were steady on Friday and poised for a weekly loss after US President Donald Trump delayed a decision on entering the Israel-Iran conflict.
Spot gold was little changed at $3,372.81 an ounce, as of 10:17 a.m. EDT (1417 GMT), its lowest since June 12. The index was down for the second-straight week, dropping 1.8%.
US gold futures shed 0.6% to $3,388.90. 'Gold is holding steady as Trump backtracks on an 'imminent' attack on Iran. For the moment, it seems all the bad news is out,' said Tai Wong, an independent metals trader.
'A drawdown towards $3,250/oz is possible, but dips have been aggressively bought in this gold rally.' Trump will decide in the next two weeks whether the United States will get involved in the Israel-Iran air war, the White House said on Thursday, raising pressure on Tehran to negotiate.
Iran launched a new barrage of missiles at Israel early on Friday, striking near residential apartments, office buildings, and industrial facilities in the southern city of Beersheba. Gold is traditionally considered a hedge during times of political and economic uncertainty.
Meanwhile, the US central bank held interest rates steady on Wednesday. While policymakers still anticipate cutting rates by half a percentage point this year, they slightly slowed the pace from there to a single quarter-percentage-point cut in each of 2026 and 2027.
A high-interest-rate environment is unfavourable to gold as it is a non-yielding asset. 'We still see sound demand from safe-haven seekers and central banks, which should provide sound support to gold prices on current levels,' said Carsten Menke, an analyst at Julius Baer.
Spot silver fell 1.1% to $35.98 per ounce, and was down 0.8% for the week. Palladium lost 0.7% to $1,043.28 but was up 1.7% during the week. Platinum dropped 2.5% to $1,268.58, gaining for the third straight week.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
44 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
Court shields foreign students at Harvard
A federal judge on Friday indefinitely paused Donald Trump's bid to block Harvard from enrolling foreign students as the US president said a "deal" with the Ivy League school was in the works, reported AFP. The order by District Judge Allison Burroughs will allow international students to continue to attend the elite university while a lawsuit filed by Harvard plays out in the courts. Trump, who has cut federal grants for Harvard and tried a host of different tactics to block the institution from hosting international students, said that his administration has been holding negotiations with Harvard. "Many people have been asking what is going on with Harvard University and their large-scale improprieties that we have been addressing, looking for a solution," Trump said in a post Friday on Truth Social. "We have been working closely with Harvard, and it is very possible that a deal will be announced over the next week or so," he said. "If a settlement is made on the basis currently being discussed, it will be mindboggingly historic, and very good for our country." Trump did not provide any details about the purported "deal." The Trump administration has sought to remove Harvard from an electronic student immigration registry and instructed embassies to deny visas to international students hoping to attend the Massachusetts-based university. Harvard has sued the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies to block the efforts, arguing that they were illegal and unconstitutional. Harvard previously secured two temporary restraining orders from Burroughs against the government's move to bar international students, and the judge extended it with a preliminary injunction on Friday. International students accounted for 27 per cent of total enrollment at Harvard in the 2024-2025 academic year and are a major source of income. In court filings, Harvard argued that Trump's actions were "retribution for Harvard's exercising its First Amendment rights to reject the government's demands to control Harvard's governance, curriculum, and the 'ideology' of its faculty and students."
Express Tribune
2 hours ago
- Express Tribune
US launches bombing of Iran's key nuclear facilities
US President Donald Trump declared that American forces had carried out a successful strike on three nuclear facilities in Iran — specifically Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The announcement, made via Trump's Truth Social platform on Saturday, detailed that all aircraft involved in the mission had exited Iranian airspace without incident. 'We have completed our very successful attack on the three nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home. Congratulations to our great American Warriors. There is not another military in the World that could have done this. NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE! Thank you for your attention to this matter,' Trump posted. In the days leading up to this operation, US defence officials had indicated a build-up of military assets, including the deployment of B-2 stealth bombers to Guam. While no direct link to the Middle East tensions was officially confirmed, analysts speculated that the move might be tied to escalating hostilities involving Iran and Israel. The B-2, capable of carrying the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator — a weapon tailored for targeting fortified underground sites — was seen as a potential instrument in neutralising Iran's nuclear infrastructure. Observers are also monitoring whether these bombers could be moved to Diego Garcia, a US-British military base strategically positioned in the Indian Ocean. Until last month, B-2 bombers had been stationed there before being replaced by B-52s. Meanwhile, the conflict between Iran and Israel has intensified. Israel claimed on Saturday it had eliminated a senior Iranian military figure amid ongoing hostilities, now over a week old. In response, Iranian officials reiterated their refusal to enter nuclear negotiations while under military pressure. While Israel maintains that Iran is nearing the capability to produce nuclear weapons, Tehran continues to assert that its nuclear programme is peaceful. President Trump has indicated he will take up to two weeks to decide whether to formally involve the United States in support of Israel, citing a desire to assess 'whether or not people come to their senses.' Reuters previously reported a surge in US military movements, including aerial refuelling tankers being sent to Europe and an aircraft carrier shifting from the Indo-Pacific towards the Middle East. Additional fighter jets were also reportedly being deployed to the region. The B-2 can be equipped to carry America's 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, designed to destroy targets deep underground. That is the weapon that experts say could be used to strike Iran's nuclear program, including Fordow.
Business Recorder
2 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Trump says US forces bombed Iran nuclear sites; says 'Fordow is gone'
WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday said that a "very successful attack" on three nuclear sites in Iran had been successfully carried out, including at Fordow. In a posting on Truth Social, Trump added, "All planes are safely on their way home" and he congratulated "our great American Warriors." Trump ended his posting saying, "Now is the time for peace." The action came as Israel and Iran have been engaged in more than a week of aerial combat that has resulted in deaths and injuries in both countries. Israel launched the attacks on Iran saying that it wanted to remove any chance of Tehran developing nuclear weapons. Iran has argued that its nuclear program is intended for peaceful purposes. Diplomatic efforts by Western nations to stop the hostilities had so far been unsuccessful. In another social media posting Trump said, "Fordow is gone." Trump appeared to be referring to the underground nuclear storage facility in Natanz. The bombing came after B-2 bombers had been dispatched to Guam earlier on Saturday, according to U.S. sources. A U.S. official told Reuters that B-2 bombers were involved in the strikes on Iran's nuclear sites. It was still unclear whether any Israeli forces were involved in this latest bombing, which significantly expanded the scope of the hostilities.
