Gold was little changed — following a steep drop on Monday — as traders weighed President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats, while a cloud lingered over stock markets due to a global technology rout.
Bullion traded just above $2,740 an ounce after Trump said he’d impose tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper imports, without giving details on the magnitude. The Financial Times reported that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is pushing for universal tariffs on US imports to start at 2.5% and rise gradually, citing unnamed sources.
Trump subsequently said that he wants across-the-board levies that are “much bigger” than that. The dollar gained, limiting any haven demand upside for gold.
Traders were also monitoring the fallout from Wall Street amid mounting concerns that a cheap artificial intelligence model from Chinese startup DeepSeek could make valuations in the sector tough to justify. Bullion tumbled 1.1% on Monday as traders sold the precious metal to cover losses in equities, including almost $1 trillion wiped from the Nasdaq.
Gold set a series of records in 2024, with gains driven by the Federal Reserve’s pivot to looser monetary policy, heightened geopolitical tensions, and central-bank buying. The metal may get a further boost this year from any further rate cuts, and a possible increase in haven demand as Trump injects uncertainty into financial markets. The Fed makes its first interest-rate decision of the year in the US on Wednesday.
Fed policymakers are expected to leave rates unchanged, but the market will be interested in the bank’s views on growth and inflation given Trump’s policies, said Manav Modi, an analyst at Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.
Spot gold was little changed at $2,743.03 an ounce at 9:25 a.m. in London, about $50 shy of a record high. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose for a second day, climbing 0.4%. Silver and platinum fell, palladium edged higher.
