Gold fell below $4,000 an ounce on Wednesday for the first time since November, as a stronger dollar and expectations of tighter US monetary policy triggered a broad selloff in precious metals.
XAU/USD – 1 Year Chart
Market Snapshot
Spot gold (XAU/USD) settled down 2.7% at $3,999.21 an ounce, its first close below $4,000 since November 7, 2025. US gold futures (GC) fell 3.2% to $4,016.40.
Silver (XAG/USD) slid 6.8% to $57.43 an ounce, while platinum (XPT/USD) dropped 4.8% to $1,582.60.
Fed And Dollar Pressure
The move followed a hawkish shift from the Federal Reserve last week, when updated projections showed several policymakers expected rate increases this year to counter inflation pressure from earlier energy price shocks.
Higher rates tend to weigh on gold because the metal pays no yield. A stronger dollar also makes dollar-priced bullion more expensive for buyers using other currencies.
Neil Welsh, head of metals at Britannia Global Markets, said metals were being “driven more by positioning flows than by underlying fundamentals”.
Wider Metals Selloff
Silver’s sharper decline reflected both weaker precious metals demand and its exposure to industrial sentiment. Traders said momentum selling accelerated after key support levels gave way.
Middle East Context
Oil prices have eased as shipping activity improves through the Strait of Hormuz, reducing some inflation fears linked to the Middle East conflict. The waterway carries about a fifth of global oil and gas flows.
Kpler data cited by Investing.com showed 31 verified vessel crossings on Tuesday. US and Iranian technical talks are expected to resume in Switzerland next week.
Outlook
Markets will next watch US personal consumption expenditures inflation data, the dollar’s direction, and whether US-Iran talks further reduce the geopolitical risk premium in energy and metals markets.
