Safe-haven gold hovers near record high on Trump tariff worries
Wed Feb 19 2025
Gold held steady near a record high on Wednesday, with investors closely watching U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff strategies that have intensified worries of a global trade war while awaiting the Federal Reserve's January meeting minutes.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Spot gold held steady at $2,932.35 an ounce, as of 0019 GMT, moving closer to a record high of $2,942.70 it hit last week.
* U.S. gold futures gained 0.1% to $2,952.40.
* Trump said on Tuesday he intends to impose auto tariffs "in the neighborhood of 25%" and similar duties on semiconductors and pharmaceutical imports, the latest in a series of measures threatening to upend international trade.
* On Friday, Trump said levies on automobiles would come as soon as April 2, the day after members of his cabinet are due to deliver reports to him outlining options for a range of import duties as he seeks to reshape global trade.
* Bullion is viewed as a traditional hedge against rising inflation and geopolitical uncertainties.
* San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly said inflation's progress is bumpy and the U.S. central bank should keep short-term borrowing costs where they are until the progress is more visible.
* The market now awaits Fed's January meeting minutes due later in the day for clues into the central bank's interest rate trajectory this year.
* On the geopolitical front, Trump's administration said on Tuesday it agreed to hold more talks with Russia on ending the war in Ukraine after an initial meeting that excluded Kyiv, a departure from Washington's previous approach that rallied U.S. allies to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin.
* Spot silver rose 0.11% to $32.90 an ounce. Platinum fell 0.7% to $980.60, and palladium eased 0.4% to $983.48.