Gold prices rose slightly in Asian trade on Monday, taking some support from haven demand amid persistent uncertainty over U.S. trade tariffs, which are set to take effect in the coming weeks.
The results of Japan’s upper house elections, held over the weekend, showed the ruling Liberal Democratic Party losing its majority, casting doubts over the future of Japan’s government. The yen firmed after the results, reflecting some haven demand.
A mild pullback in the dollar, after a two-week ascent, also helped spur some gains in metal markets, although gold remained squarely in a $200 trading range seen since at least April.
Platinum and silver, however, continued to outperform amid sustained expectations of tighter supplies and improving demand.
Spot gold rose 0.4% to $3,364.21 an ounce, while gold futures for September rose 0.4% to $3,371.42/oz by 01:20 ET (05:20 GMT).
Gold clocks some gains amid US tariff uncertainty
Gains in gold came after the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the European Union was preparing retaliatory measures for U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs.
This was in response to U.S. officials demanding more concessions from the bloc for a potential trade deal, including a baseline tariff rate of 15%, which caught EU negotiators off guard.
The WSJ report underscored uncertainty over U.S. trade policy, especially as an August 1 deadline for Trump’s tariffs to take effect draws closer. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that August 1 was a hard deadline for the tariffs, which range from 20% to as high as 50% on major economies.
