Gold hit all-time highs of AED 11,650 ($3,186) on Thursday, as the extraordinary activity in global markets over the past week continued. The White House announcement of a temporary pause on newly imposed global tariffs on Wednesday, provided momentary relief to volatile markets. Anxiety remains around further tariff increases on US-China trade, a flashing reminder of the 2018 market dynamic, which saw equity markets struggle under the pressure of a US-China trade war.
James Campion, Popular Investor at eToro, said: The price of spot gold climbed back above its key AED 11,300 per ounce level, trading around AED 11,500 by late afternoon on Thursday, before going on to record highs, representing a 19.22% return year to date. This marks a recovery from a brief liquidity driven pullback on Monday, which saw gold touch AED 10,900, following a period of extreme volatility in global markets.
Gold’s reaction highlights its resilience in complex market environments. While the easing of broad trade tensions might typically reduce some safe-haven demand, the simultaneous intensification of the US-China conflict and the underlying inflation risks associated with tariffs continue to provide support for the metal.
Investor appetite for gold has been robust. Global gold-backed ETFs saw massive inflows of US$21 billion (226 tonnes) in the first quarter of 2025, the second-highest quarterly dollar inflow ever recorded, according to market data.
Gold remains my largest holding, the outlook looks bullish over the next 100 days. The combination of tariff-induced inflation risks and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty provides a robust foundation for gold prices.
While the immediate pause of some tariffs brought some calm to wider markets, the underlying drivers that propelled gold higher – including persistent geopolitical uncertainty focused on US-China trade tariffs, the potential inflationary pressures from tariffs, and questions around future central bank policy – remain firmly in place, supporting a constructive outlook for the precious metal.
