Gold prices climbed sharply during Asian trading on Tuesday, with silver and platinum also posting gains as precious metals stabilized after two sessions of heavy losses.
Spot gold jumped nearly 4% to $4,855.93 per ounce, while April gold futures rose 4.4% to $4,853.79 per ounce.
Silver outperformed, surging 5.1% to $83.105 per ounce, while spot platinum added 1.7% to trade at $2,167.67 per ounce.
Gold rebounds after steep pullback from record highs
Gold had fallen to around $4,400 per ounce on Monday, shedding almost $1,200 from the record highs reached last week. The sharp drop was driven largely by aggressive profit-taking following political and monetary policy developments in the United States.
Markets reacted after Donald Trump nominated former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh as the next chair of the Federal Reserve. While the move removed a key source of uncertainty, it also reduced some safe-haven demand for gold.
Warsh is widely seen as less dovish than investors had anticipated, raising expectations that U.S. monetary policy could remain tighter for longer. Still, signs of stabilization emerged late Monday, with spot gold closing well above its intraday lows.
Analysts at ANZ said further price stabilization will depend largely on retail investor sentiment. They noted that strong physical demand in recent months could help absorb selling pressure from leveraged institutional positions, while underlying gold fundamentals remain supportive.
ANZ also highlighted that central bank gold buying is likely to stay strong amid strained global relations. In addition, concerns over Federal Reserve independence and rising risk premiums on U.S. assets could fuel volatility that supports investment demand for gold through 2026.
Investor attention is now turning to the upcoming U.S. nonfarm payrolls report due on Friday, which could provide clearer signals on the strength of the U.S. economy and the future direction of interest rates.
Beyond monetary policy, easing geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Iran have also weighed on safe-haven demand this week. Nuclear talks between Washington and Tehran are set to resume on Friday, following repeated warnings from Trump over potential military action.
Copper steadies as Chinese buyers step in
In base metals, copper prices also edged higher on Tuesday, rebounding from recent declines.
Benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange rose 1.2% to $13,081.95 per metric ton, while COMEX copper futures gained 1.4% to $5.9104 per pound.
Copper’s recent pullback was milder than the sell-off seen in precious metals, as demand prospects remain strong amid expanding energy infrastructure and growing data center construction.
ANZ analysts noted that Chinese buyers stepped in last week to purchase copper at lower prices. China, the world’s largest copper importer, is also believed to be building inventories ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.
Demand from China is expected to remain robust as Beijing continues to roll out stimulus measures to support economic growth.
