Gold prices slips further; profit-taking from all-time highs

Investing.com-- Gold prices fell Wednesday, extending the previous session’s sell-off as easing U.S.-China trade tensions prompted traders to take profits after the yellow metals’ strong rally.

At 08:55 ET (12:55 GMT), Spot Gold was down 2.3% at $4,029.90 per ounce, after sliding as low as $4,003.39/oz earlier in the day. U.S. Gold Futures rose 1.6% to $4,045.34/oz.

The yellow metal slumped more than 5% on Tuesday, marking its steepest one-day decline since 2020. Prices had surged to record highs of $4,381.21/oz earlier this week, buoyed by geopolitical concerns and expectations of U.S. monetary easing.

Gold suffers sharp losses 

The retreat comes after comments from U.S. President Donald Trump, who said an upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping could yield a “good deal” on trade, although he conceded that the talks “may not happen.”

His remarks helped lift market sentiment and curbed appetite for traditional safe-haven assets such as gold.

Further easing trade tensions, India’s Mint newspaper reported that Washington and New Delhi are close to finalizing a trade agreement that would cut U.S. tariffs on Indian goods to around 15%-16% from the current 50%, a move seen as boosting bilateral economic ties and global risk appetite.

"The catalyst appears to be profit-taking in a market that has been hugely overbought in recent weeks," ING analysts said in a note, adding that "clearly, market participants were getting increasingly nervous over the sustainability of the uptrend."

U.S. CPI due 

Investors remained cautious ahead of the U.S. consumer price index (CPI) report due on Friday, which is expected to offer crucial guidance ahead of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision next week. 

The ongoing U.S. government shutdown has raised uncertainty in financial markets, with parts of the economic data calendar disrupted.

Metal markets subdued after declines

Other precious and industrial metals also fell in the previous session and traded in tight ranges on Wednesday.

Silver prices traded largely unchanged at $47.705/oz after tumbling over 7% in the previous session, while Platinum Futures rose 0.4% to $1,525.70/oz.

Benchmark Copper Futures on the London Metal Exchange gained 0.4% to $10,654.30 a ton, while U.S. Copper Futures edged up 0.3% to $4.9815 a pound.

Ayushman Ojha contributed to this article