Gold prices fell on Friday as investors reassessed their risk outlook in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff measures, which have provided more clarity on market trends but raised concerns over economic slowdown.
Gold prices fell nearly 2% on Friday as traders liquidated their bullion positions following wider market sell-offs, after China’s retaliation with fresh tariffs against U.S. President Trump’s sweeping levies.
Spot gold was down 1.9% at $3,053.98 an ounce. It hit a record high of $3,167.57 on Thursday. U.S. gold futures were down 1.6% at $3,072.10.
Investors are selling off some of their gold holdings to cover losses in other asset classes, prompted by margin calls, analysts said.
“We still see scope for further upside risks, given the current risk-off environment… we expect prices to hit further record highs in the second quarter,” said Standard Chartered analyst Suki Cooper.
The bank’s Q2 gold price forecast is at $3,300/oz.
China’s finance ministry announced that it will impose additional tariffs of 34% on all U.S. goods starting from April 10, in response to reciprocal tariffs unveiled by Trump this week. Global stocks fell for a second consecutive day on the news, deepening losses amid fears of a global recession.
Friday’s Labor Department report showed the U.S. economy added 228,000 jobs in March, compared with a rise of 135,000 expected by economists polled by Reuters. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, stood at 4.2% compared with expectations of 4.1%.
“I think (NFP data) is going to help the Federal Reserve’s case to continue delaying lowering the interest rates,” said Alex Ebkarian, chief operating officer at Allegiance Gold.
While gold is considered a safeguard against uncertainty, it tends to thrive in a low-interest-rate environment. The market is currently pricing 120 bps of Fed rate cuts by the year-end, starting in June.
Investors are also awaiting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech later in the day for indications on monetary policy.
Spot silver declined 4.9% to $30.32 an ounce and was headed for its worst week since September 2020. Platinum lost 2.8% to $925.55 and palladium slipped 1.4% to $915.21, with both headed for a weekly loss.
