Gold prices raced to an all-time high on Friday, supported by recession concerns as escalating tariff tensions between the United States and China fuelled investor demand for safe-haven assets like bullion.
Spot gold was up 1% at $3,205.53 an ounce, as of 0039 GMT. Bullion scaled to an all-time peak of $3,217.43 earlier in the session, and has gained more than 5% for the week. U.S. gold futures climbed 1.5% to $3,226.50.
Gold prices topped the third consecutive day with record-breaking highs on Monday, and climbed in particular at Asian trading hours, as investors from mainland China have flocked to an “stateless” asset seen as fairly secure amid growing tensions between China and the U.S.
New York gold futures exceeded $3,400 for the first time in that day, and topped $3,440 at some point. Funds moved from neutral positions to buying shortly after the Easter weekend.
In the midst of announcing a 90-day trade suspension on several nations, U.S. President Donald Trump raised taxes for Chinese imports, increasing the rate to 145%..
China has been executing each of Trump’s tariff increases by imposing its own increases and has sparked concerns that Beijing might push tariffs above the current threshold of 84%.
Gold’s recent rally is also fueled by a strong interest from central bankers, hopes of an ease in interest rates from the Federal Reserve, geopolitical instability in the Middle East and Europe, and a rise in the gold-backed Exchange Traded Funds.
Gold, often viewed as a security against economic and political instability or inflation increased over 21% in this year.
Spot silver increased 0.3 percent up to $31.28 an ounce. Platinum gained 0.1 percent to $938.35 and palladium climbed 0.8 percent to $915.75.