Gold prices were largely steady on Tuesday as investors paused after recent volatility and assessed developments in the Middle East after US President Donald Trump delayed a planned military strike on Iran.
Spot gold edged down 0.1% to US$4,560.39 per ounce by 0228 GMT after touching its lowest level since March 30 in the previous session. US gold futures for June delivery inched up 0.1% to US$4,563.50, reflecting cautious trading conditions across precious metals markets.
Market sentiment remained anchored to geopolitical headlines, with traders weighing the impact of easing tensions alongside upcoming US monetary policy signals. “The general kind of theme around the markets today is the dust is settling from Friday and markets are kind of trying to figure out where they go next as they look to this event risk midweek,” said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive, referring to the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s April meeting.
Attention is now turning to those minutes due on Wednesday, which investors expect to provide clearer guidance on the Federal Reserve’s policy direction. The shift in focus comes after gold extended losses on Monday before recovering slightly, as inflation concerns and volatility in bond markets drove swings in sentiment.
Geopolitical risk remained in focus after Trump said he had paused a planned attack on Iran to allow negotiations to continue on a potential deal, following a peace proposal from Tehran. The development helped ease some safe haven demand pressures but did not remove uncertainty from markets.
Broader commodities were also mixed. Spot silver fell 1.3% to US$76.63 per ounce, platinum eased 0.5% to US$1,969.84 and palladium dropped 1.2% to US$1,401.74 as traders recalibrated positions across precious metals.
Reuters
