Gold prices rose from a one-month low in Asian trade on Thursday, but remained under pressure from rising concerns over the U.S.-Iran war and a potentially hawkish outlook for the Federal Reserve.
Bullion was nursing losses in April as safe haven appetite for gold was largely overshadowed by strength in the dollar and concerns over the inflationary effects of the Iran war.
Spot gold rose 0.5% to $4,564.12 an ounce, while gold futures rose 0.3% to $4,575.66/oz by 02:12 ET (06:12 GMT).
Other precious metals also rebounded from recent losses. Spot silver rose 1.2% to $72.2485/oz, while spot platinum rose 2% to $1,918/oz.
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Gold nurses overnight losses after Fed meeting signals hawkish bias Gold tumbled overnight after the Fed held rates as expected on Wednesday. But the meeting showed increasing dissent among board members towards the central bank’s easing language.
Three members of the Fed’s 12-member rate-setting board objected to the Fed’s easing bias, especially in the face of rising inflationary risks and economic uncertainty from the Iran war.
The development saw traders further scale back expectations for any interest rate cuts by the Fed in 2026. The dollar firmed on Thursday, extending gains from earlier this week.
Wednesday’s meeting was also the last under Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who said he will step down from the role but stay on as a governor.
Powell’s potential successor, Kevin Warsh, is likely to be confirmed for the role in the coming weeks. Warsh earlier told Congress he had made no commitments to cut interest rates.
Steady rates bode poorly for non-yielding assets such as gold, given that they increase the opportunity cost of investing in bullion over debt.
Beyond the Fed, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank are also set to meet on Thursday.
Oil spikes on report of Trump considering more Iran military action Metal markets remained under pressure from strength in oil, with Brent prices surging to a four-year high on Thursday.
This came after a report said Trump will be briefed on more military options on Iran, which include direct strikes, a partial, forced reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and even a special forces operation to seize Tehran’s uranium stores.
The surge in oil prices added to concerns over energy-driven inflation eliciting hawkish stances from major global central banks. This notion has been a major weight on gold since the onset of the Iran war in late-February.
