Gold and silver continue to soar with gold taking aim at $5000 an ounce early Friday as silver approached $100 an ounce and platinum hit a record.
The precious metals are attracting haven demand amid geopolitical uncertainty and threats to the Federal Reserve’s independence ahead of the central bank’s next scheduled policy decision next week. The metals also got a boost from a weaker dollar, which makes them more attractive to holders of other currencies.
February gold futures rose 1.6% Thursday to settle at $4,913.40 an ounce on Comex. The front-month contract is up 6.9% so far this week. Bullion is up 13% this month after rising 2% in December and gaining 6.5% in November. It rallied 64% last year. The metal rose 27% in 2024. The February contract is currently up $33.70 (+0.69%) an ounce to $4947.10 and the DG spot price is $4953.00.
Goldman Sachs raised its forecast for gold at the end of this year to $5,400 an ounce. It had previously predicted $4,900. The bank cited increasing demand from both private investors and central banks, according to Bloomberg.
March silver futures climbed 4% Thursday to settle at $96.37 an ounce on Comex. The front-month contract is up 9.2% so far this week. The white metal has hit a series of record highs in recent weeks amid surging industrial demand. Silver is up 37% this month after soaring 24% in December and increasing 19% in November. It climbed 141% last year after rising 21% in 2024. The March contract is currently up $3.213 (+3.33%) an ounce to $99.985 and the DG spot price is $99.92.
Risk-off assets have been buoyed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to annex Greenland, the recent U.S. attack on Venezuela and the confrontation with the Fed. Trump has also indicated that he’s close to selecting a successor to Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, with whom he has argued about monetary policy. The Justice Department has also launched a criminal probe into the Fed chairman. The president has repeatedly called for lower interest rates.
Over 97% of investors are betting that the Fed will keep interest rates unchanged at the next policy meeting next week, according to figures tracked by the CME FedWatch Tool. About 2% expect another 25 basis point cut. 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.
The Fed reduced interest rates for a third consecutive time last month to 3.50% to 3.75%. The central bank has indicated that it closely watches both inflation and the labor market when setting monetary policy.
The Fed’s favorite inflation report, the personal consumption expenditures price index, came out Thursday with November and October data delayed by the federal government shutdown in the fall. It showed inflation in November came in at 2.8% for both core and headline numbers. Core PCE excludes volatile food and energy prices. The figure was in line with economists’ expectations, though further away from the central bank’s target of 2% inflation. October PCE came in at 2.7% for both core and headline numbers.
Spot palladium rallied 1.8% Thursday to $1,905.00 an ounce and is up 5.5% this week. Palladium is up 18% this month after increasing 11% in December and adding 0.5% in November. Palladium gained 74% last year after dropping 17% in 2024. The DG spot price is currently up $84.80 an ounce to $1989.50.
Spot platinum increased 3.4% Thursday to $2,591.20 an ounce and is up 11% this week. It’s up 28% so far this month after surging 22% in December and climbing 4.7% in November. Platinum increased 122% in 2025 after losing 8.4% in 2024. The current DG spot price is up $132.20 an ounce to $2719.00.
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