Gold prices surged above $4,500 per ounce on Thursday, with spot gold trading at $4,500.84 per ounce at 18:16:01 IST, up $66.34 or 1.50%, according to real-time market data. Silver rallied more than 2%, climbing to $74.4615 per ounce at 18:15:21 IST, gaining $1.7205 or 2.37%. The dramatic surge came after US President Donald Trump signalled that negotiations aimed at ending the conflict with Iran had entered their final phase, as reported by multiple sources. The move represents a significant escalation from earlier gains when spot gold was up 0.7% at $4,461.09 per ounce and U.S. gold futures for August delivery gained 0.5% to $4,487.90. Domestically, on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), gold rose ₹1,706 or 1.08% to trade higher as of 18:24 IST on June 4, while silver gained ₹3,653 or 1.39% as of 18:25 IST.
Cathie Wood has reignited the long-running debate between Bitcoin and gold after raising her bullish Bitcoin forecast to as much as $1.5 million, drawing sharp criticism from billionaire mining investor Frank Giustra. According to comments shared on X on June 3, the Ark Invest chief recently reaffirmed a base-case Bitcoin target of roughly $730,000 and a bull-case projection of $1.5 million by 2030. Wood argued that institutional adoption remains in its early stages and described Bitcoin as a form of protection against currency debasement.
Oil prices eased in early trade on Thursday as the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel boosted hopes of a U.S.-Iran peace deal. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, elevated oil prices can accelerate inflation and keep interest rates higher for longer, creating a mixed dynamic for precious metals. The inflationary pressures are expected to persist without a more comprehensive resolution to the conflict. Markets, which had expected two US interest rate cuts this year before the Iran war, are currently pricing in a 42% chance of a 25-basis-point rate hike in December according to CME Group's FedWatch tool. Cleveland Federal Reserve President Beth Hammack said on Tuesday the US central bank may need to raise interest rates soon should already-high inflation pressures continue to mount.
New York Federal Reserve President John Williams noted that he does not expect upside risks to inflation caused by the war in the Middle East to be long-lasting and reiterated there was no need at this time to change U.S. monetary policy. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, investors now await the US nonfarm payrolls data for May due on Friday to gauge the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy path. A strong jobs report could add momentum to gold's decline, especially if it results in more traders pricing in an interest rate hike by December. The Fed's latest Beige Book noted steady US economic activity and stable employment, while officials remained divided on the policy outlook.
The precious metals complex showed broad-based recovery, with spot silver rising 0.6% to $73.13 per ounce, platinum gaining 0.7% to $1,872.11, and palladium adding 0.9% to $1,313.51. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, gold's gains are still very much at the mercy of oil and the dollar, with the metal only moving higher when they pull back. Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade, noted that 'Gold's gains are still very much at the mercy of oil and the dollar. It only moves higher when they pull back, making it highly dependent on positive U.S.-Iran headlines for any sustained momentum.' Matt Simpson, a senior analyst at StoneX, said 'I don't think we've seen the end of the bull run, but it is clearly time for a shakeout in general. So I anticipate choppy trade as we head into the year end, with a slight upwards bias of around $5,000.'
