Gold claws back some of its turf in Monday morning trading, putting it back above $4700 an ounce. Friday saw gold’s biggest drop in a decade triggered by the news that U.S. President Donald Trump would appoint inflation hawk Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve chairman. Silver also fell below $100 an ounce on the news.
While the Warsh nomination spurred the dollar higher—undercutting support for gold, which becomes less attractive to holders of other currencies when the greenback gets stronger—precious metals in general were considered overbought, reaching a series of record highs in recent weeks. The rally to all-time highs in gold and silver had been triggered by geopolitical and economic risk, Fed independence and Chinese buying.
Investors will now be looking for a floor to halt the slide in precious metals.
April gold futures plummeted 11% Friday to settle at $4,745.10 an ounce on Comex, triggering a drop of 5.4% in the front-month contract for the week. Bullion still surged 9.3% in January after rising 2% in December and gaining 6.5% in November. It rallied 64% last year. The April contract is currently down $12.80 (-0.31%) an ounce to $4732.30 and the DG spot price is $4755.60.
March silver futures tumbled 31% Friday to settle at $78.53 an ounce on Comex, and the front-month contract lost 23%. It had previously touched new record above $115. The white metal had soared in recent weeks amid surging industrial demand. Silver gained 11% in January after climbing 24% in December and increasing 19% in November. It rose 141% last year. The March contract is currently up $0.589 (+0.75%) an ounce to $79.12 and the DG spot price is $80.40.
Key economic news due out this week includes a closely watched group of U.S. jobs reports—the private payrolls report for January from ADP on Wednesday, followed by weekly initial jobless claims from the Labor Department Thursday and finally the key U.S. monthly jobs report for January from the Labor Department on Friday.
The Fed has said it closely watches both labor market and inflation data when setting monetary policy. Friday, the producer price index report for December unexpectedly ticked up, signaling that rising prices are affecting businesses as well as consumers.
The Fed on Wednesday kept benchmark interest rates unchanged at 3.50% to 3.75% after reducing rates at the previous three policy meetings. The central bank began raising interest rates in March 2022 to fight inflation, ultimately imposing increases of by 5.25 percentage points before beginning rate cuts in 2024.
Trump and outgoing Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May, have been at loggerheads over the president’s call for lower interest rates. Fed independence has also been called into question amid a Justice Department investigation into Powell.
More than 87% of investors are betting that the Fed will keep interest rates unchanged again in March, according to figures tracked by the CME FedWatch Tool. About 13% expect another 25 basis point cut. The Fed reduced interest rates for a third consecutive time in December to 3.50% to 3.75%.
Spot palladium lost 18% Friday to $1,653.50 an ounce and fell 19% last week. Palladium rose 2.4% in January after increasing 11% in December and adding 0.5% in November. Palladium gained 74% last year. Currently, the DG spot price is up $10.40 an ounce to $1735.00.
Spot platinum slid 22% Friday to $2,057.30 an ounce and decreased 26% last week. It gained 1.4% in January after surging 22% in December and climbing 4.7% in November. Platinum increased 122% in 2025. The DG spot price is currently down $0.60 an ounce to $2151.00.
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