“I wouldn’t want to stand on the short side of this trade, though I do think profit taking could emerge,” said Ahmad Assiri, an analyst at Pepperstone. “Today’s rally is being powered by multiple forces converging at once, a backdrop that keeps the medium-term story intact, even if the near term turns volatile.”
Trump’s administration also moved on Friday to exempt gold bullion, along with some metals, from his country-based tariffs. The measure formalizes a plan to exempt gold bars from tariffs, after a US Customs and Border Protection ruling weeks ago stunned traders and caused confusion by indicating bullion would be subject to import duties.
Meanwhile, data released at the weekend showed the People’s Bank of China increased its gold holdings in August for a 10th month, in a continued push to diversify its reserves away from US dollars.
Spot gold was trading 1.3% higher at $3,634.14 an ounce as of 11:39 a.m. in New York. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index edged lower. Silver, palladium and platinum all gained.
