April gold futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange reached $3,000.5 per troy ounce as of 10:30 a.m. on Friday, a 0.31 percent increase from the previous session. Spot gold, meanwhile, had climbed 2.73 percent in the preceding five trading days, closing at $2,989.31 per troy ounce.
The price of gold bullion has experienced robust growth, rising approximately 14 percent this year, following a 27 percent increase in 2024.
Analysts attribute the ascent to heightened concerns over the Trump administration’s protectionist trade policies, which have reignited fears of a global trade war and increased market volatility.
“Strong demand from exchange-traded funds and continued central bank purchases, coupled with geopolitical uncertainty and the uncertainty created by tariff changes, have fueled the appetite for gold,” said Suki Cooper, executive director of precious metals research at Standard Chartered Bank.
Recent U.S. economic data, including February’s consumer and producer price indices, which fell short of market expectations, have bolstered anticipation of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts, further contributing to gold’s rise.
The metal, traditionally viewed as a hedge against inflation and economic instability, has attracted significant investment as global tensions persist.
“Gold is in a secular bull market,” said Alex Ebkarian, chief operating officer at Alliance Gold, a precious metals dealer, who expressed confidence that prices could trade between $3,000 and $3,200 this year.
BNP Paribas, the French multinational bank, recently raised its 2025 average gold price forecast by 8 percent to $2,990 per troy ounce, reflecting increased institutional confidence in the metal’s trajectory amid global economic headwinds.
“The gold market in the second half of 2025 will price in, or normalize, the trade risks led by President Trump,” said David Wilson, an analyst of commodity strategies at BNP Paribas. “If trade tensions do not persistently escalate, gold prices may struggle to maintain additional upward momentum in the second half of the year.”
reporter
Kim Dong-young
davekim0807@ajupress.com
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