Dec 30 (Reuters) – Precious metals rebounded on Tuesday, after falling sharply in the previous session, as the market refocused on geopolitical and economic risks, reigniting gold’s rally to cap its best year since 1979.
Spot gold rose 0.8% to $4,364.70 per ounce at 2:07 p.m. ET (1907 GMT). On Monday, it recorded its biggest daily percentage loss since October 21 as profit-taking pushed it down from Friday’s record high of $4,549.71.
U.S. gold futures settled 1% higher at $4,386.30.
“We saw very extreme volatility yesterday where we saw strong action in Asian trading to the upside and then rather substantial profit-taking… but things have stabilised somewhat today, the trade remains generally favourable,” said Peter Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at Zaner Metals.
Gold, seen as a safe-haven asset, has surged 66% in 2025 — its steepest climb since 1979 — propelled by a perfect storm of interest rate easing, geopolitical flashpoints, robust central bank purchases and flows into bullion-backed ETFs.
The U.S. Federal Reserve agreed to cut interest rates at its December meeting only after a deeply nuanced debate about the risks facing the U.S. economy right now, according to minutes of the latest two-day session.
The Fed next meets on January 27-28, with investors currently expecting rates to be left unchanged.
“The market remains sceptical on the Russia-Ukraine peace deal, and the broader measures of geopolitical risk remain elevated,” supporting prices, Grant said.
Russia accused Ukraine of trying to attack President Vladimir Putin’s residence and vowed retaliation. Ukraine said the claim was baseless.
Silver rose 7.3% to $77.48 per ounce. It hit an all-time high of $83.62 on Monday, before logging its biggest daily drop since August 2020. Silver has soared 168% this year, driven by its inclusion on the U.S. critical minerals list, supply deficits and growing industrial and investor appetite.
Platinum rose 5.1% to $2,216.45 per ounce. It also touched a record high on Monday, of $2,478.50, before logging its biggest-ever one-day drop.
Palladium rose 1.6% to $1,639.08, after falling around 16% on Monday.
(Reporting by Anjana Anil in Bengaluru; Editing by Susan Fenton and Lisa Shumaker)
