Both gold and silver prices saw renewed buying interest in Monday’s session, 19 January, hitting fresh historic highs as concerns over a potential escalation in global trade tensions strengthened the outlook for safe-haven assets.
February gold futures on MCX opened higher at ₹1,43,321 per 10 grams, up from the previous close of ₹1,42,517, and went on to hit a new record high of ₹1,45,590 ( ₹2,983 higher), crossing ₹1.45 lakh for the first time and snapping a two-day losing streak.
Silver prices, too, resumed their winning run, with March silver contracts on MCX gaining ₹16,438 per kilogram to reach yet₹3,04,200″> another historic high of ₹3,04,200. With today’s rally, prices have gained a cumulative ₹60,876 per kilogram in just seven trading sessions.
The rally also contributed to a 27% surge in January so far. This followed a 170% rally in 2025, driven by geopolitical escalations, global trade tensions, monetary easing, ETF inflows, supply constraints, rising safe-haven demand, and a decline in exchange inventories.
It took less than nine months for silver to rise from ₹1 lakh to ₹2 lakh, and the next ₹1 lakh was achieved in under seven weeks.
Trump’s Greenland tariff threat revives trade tension fears, boosting gold and silver
Last year’s rally in both gold and silver prices has extended into early 2026 as fresh concerns have been added to existing headwinds, driven by US President Donald Trump’s capture of Venezuela’s leader, his renewed threats over Greenland tariffs, and violent protests in Iran.
While Trump softened his tone regarding potential attacks on Iran, he said over the weekend that he would impose a 10% tariff on goods from eight European countries starting 1 February, rising to 25% in June unless a deal is reached for the “purchase of Greenland”.
The tariffs will apply to Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland. This revived tariff-related concerns for global markets, which had reached new heights in 2025, largely driven by optimism about artificial intelligence.
The move drew quick rebukes from European leaders, who are now poised to halt the approval of the trade agreement struck last year. Bloomberg reported that French President Emmanuel Macron may request the activation of the EU’s anti‑coercion instrument, the bloc’s most powerful trade retaliation tool.
Since the start of the year, Trump has reopened his tariff playbook. Earlier this month, he warned of 25% tariffs on countries doing business with Iran and also proposed a massive 500% tariff on countries importing crude from Russia.
(With inputs from Bloomberg)
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