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Gold prices declined in Asian trading on Friday, pressured by a stronger U.S. dollar and profit-taking, as traders braced for fresh inflation data that could shape the Federal Reserve’s interest rate outlook.
Spot gold fell 0.7% to $3,293.44 an ounce, while gold futures for August delivery slipped 0.8% to $3,316.67/oz by 00:44 ET (04:44 GMT). The yellow metal was on track for a weekly loss of over 1%, its first weekly decline since mid-May.
Tariff Turmoil Offers Little Shelter for Gold
Despite the legal rollercoaster surrounding President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs, gold struggled to hold onto gains. The appeals court’s Thursday decision to temporarily reinstate Trump’s sweeping tariff plan provided only brief support for bullion, with the market largely brushing off the latest twist in a saga marked by policy whiplash.
Trump’s erratic approach to tariffs has fueled market volatility, but traders seem to be growing skeptical that the president will follow through with his more extreme measures. Social media buzzed with the term “TACO”—an acronym for “Trump Always Chickens Out”—as market participants voiced doubts about the durability of Trump’s tariff threats.
Dollar Resilience Pressures Gold, Metals
Strength in the dollar continued to weigh on precious metals. The greenback found support from signs of stability in the Treasury market and upbeat U.S. economic data, including a smaller-than-expected contraction in first-quarter GDP. Comments from Federal Reserve officials indicating a reluctance to cut rates in the near term also helped underpin the dollar.
This dollar strength has broadly pressured metal prices. Platinum futures slipped 0.6% to $1,074.85/oz, silver futures dropped 1% to $33.075/oz, and copper edged lower, with benchmark London futures down 0.1% to $9,564.40 a ton and U.S. copper futures falling 0.4% to $4.6535 a pound.
Focus on U.S. Inflation Data
Market attention now turns to the release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, due later Friday. The data is expected to show that inflation remained sticky in April, with core PCE holding above the central bank’s 2% target—a dynamic that could further delay potential interest rate cuts.
With inflation data looming, and the dollar firm, gold bulls may struggle to regain control in the short term, despite ongoing geopolitical and fiscal uncertainties.
