Gold slips after hitting all-time high on Trump tariffs

By Ashitha Shivaprasad

(Reuters) – Gold prices took a breather on Thursday after surging to yet another all-time high following U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of sweeping import tariffs, which drove investors to the safe-haven asset.

Spot gold was down 0.5% at $3,119.09 by 1015 GMT amid some profit-taking, having hit a record peak of $3,167.57 earlier in the day. U.S. gold futures fell 0.9% to $3,138.

Gold has continued to build on last year’s rally, with prices rising 19% in 2025 as a combination of factors – including economic and geopolitical uncertainties, robust central bank purchases and increased flows into gold-backed exchange-traded funds – supported the metal. [GOL/ETF]

“Weaker trade, higher input costs and shrinking margins are badly hurting the stock market, while geopolitical mistrust is deepening,” said Adrian Ash, director of research at BullionVault.

“Such a gloomy outlook for economic growth offers the perfect backdrop for further gains in gold.”

Trump on Wednesday unveiled plans to slap a 10% tariff on most goods imported to the U.S., as well as much higher levies on dozens of rivals and allies alike. The far-reaching duties have sent global markets reeling amid concerns they could dampen economic growth and stoke inflation. [MKTS/GLOB]

Analysts at ANZ said central bank purchases of gold and strategic fund flows into the metal would push prices towards $3,200 over the next six months.

But Trump’s tariffs do not apply to certain goods, including copper, gold, energy and “certain minerals that are not available in the United States”, a White House fact sheet showed. Gold stocks in COMEX warehouses in the U.S. have jumped in recent months on fears import tariffs might curb shipments.

Spot silver slipped 4.4% to $32.54, its lowest since March 11.

Since the introduction of a minimum 10% baseline tariff in countries importing semiconductors, where silver is used extensively, demand has become a concern, said Reliance Securities’ senior analyst Jigar Trivedi.

“This is why we are seeing selling pressure in silver,” Trivedi said.

Platinum fell 2.4% to $960.45, and palladium lost 1.6% to $954.75.

(Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad and Anjana Anil in Bengaluru. Graphics by Vineet Sachdev. Editing by Mark Potter and Jan Harvey)