Gold rises after Trump signals Iran conflict may be nearing end

While trading has been choppy and upward momentum has stalled, gold has still gained around a fifth this year.

• Gold rose 0.9% after Trump signaled Middle East war may end soon
• US dollar and oil prices fell as gold wiped out previous losses
• Trump said US Navy will escort tankers through Strait of Hormuz

Did our AI summary help?

Gold advanced after President Donald Trump signaled the war in the Middle East could be nearing an end, sending the US dollar and oil prices lower.

Bullion rose as much as 0.9% to top $5,180 an ounce, wiping out a decline in the previous session. Trump said the conflict would be resolved “very soon” and a gauge of the dollar fell as much as 0.1%, extending a decline on Monday. Crude tumbled more than 10% in a market that’s been whiplashed by exceptionally volatile trading.

Any sign that the White House is prepared to end the war with Iran – now in its second week – could lift some of the pressure that has weighed on gold. The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, as well as Iranian missile strikes on energy infrastructure, has led oil prices to surge and raised concerns about inflation.

In turn, this has reduced the likelihood of interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and other central banks. Higher borrowing costs are usually a headwind for gold, which doesn’t pay interest. Adding to the pressure, the haven asset has also been used as a source of liquidity during a rout in global equities as the war has progressed.

Gold holdings have been challenged as markets have priced out rate cuts, Daniel Ghali, senior commodity strategist at TD Securities, said in a note. There are some signs that traders have “bought the dip” in the over-the-counter physical market, he said, but “volume has been limited and remains typical in scale.”

At a news conference at his resort in Doral, Florida, Trump also said the US Navy would escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, the chokepoint off the coast of Iran through which a fifth of the world’s oil and gas must pass. But the US president didn’t offer any specifics on the plan. He also said he doesn’t expect the conflict to end this week.

While trading has been choppy and upward momentum has stalled, gold has still gained around a fifth this year. Trump’s upheaval of global trade and geopolitics, as well as threats to the Fed’s independence, has broadly supported safer assets.

Spot gold advanced 0.9% to $5,184.41 an ounce as of 10:00 a.m. in Singapore. Silver rose 2.9% to $89.49. Platinum gained, while palladium fell. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was down 0.1% after falling 0.2% in the previous session.