By Rahul Paswan
(Reuters) – Gold prices dipped on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump hinted at lower tariffs for China and backed away from threats to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Spot gold was down 1.5% at $3,331.29 an ounce by 1150 GMT after hitting a record high of $3,500.05 in the previous session. U.S. gold futures dropped 2.2% to $3,342.90.
“The comments of President Trump, including his softer stance towards the Fed chairman as well as his comments on China, eased some market concerns and weighed on the yellow metal,” said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo. [MKTS/GLOB] [USD/]
However, Staunovo remained bullish on bullion.
“We continue to expect gold to rise to $3,500/oz over the coming months,” he said.
President Trump backed off from threats to fire Powell after days of intensifying criticism of the central bank chief for not cutting interest rates.
He also expressed optimism that he would make progress with China that would lower tariffs substantially but also warned that “if they don’t make a deal, we’ll set the deal”.
The International Monetary Fund, meanwhile, has made sharp reductions to its outlook for both U.S. and global growth this year, with Trump’s tariff policy the central reason behind the downgrade.
Gold, traditionally considered a hedge against global instability, has shattered multiple record highs and gained more than 26% since the start of 2025.
JPMorgan said it expects to see gold prices crossing $4,000 an ounce next year.
It also predicted greater headwinds for silver in the near term, given industrial demand uncertainty, but expects prices to firm in the second half of 2025, heading towards $39 an ounce by the end of the year.
Spot silver jumped 1.2% to $32.92 an ounce while platinum gained about 1% to $967.90 and palladium rose 0.5% to $940.82.
(Reporting by Rahul Paswan in Bengaluru; Editing by Jan Harvey and David Goodman)
