LONDON, January 29, 2026, 06:32 (GMT)
- Gold hit a fresh record just shy of $5,600 an ounce, extending a January surge.
- Silver touched a record high of $119.34 as investors chased precious metals as “safe havens”.
- Banks and analysts lifted targets but warned the rally looks stretched and vulnerable to sharp pullbacks.
Gold climbed to another all-time high on Thursday, trading just shy of $5,600 an ounce, while silver pushed toward $120 as investors sought shelter in precious metals amid fresh geopolitical and economic unease. 1
The move matters now because it is spilling beyond gold bugs and into mainstream portfolios. Gold is back in the centre of the “safe-haven” trade — assets investors buy when they want protection — at a time when confidence in the usual shelters has frayed.
Silver is adding a rough edge. Citi raised its short-term silver price forecast to $150 per ounce from $100, even as analysts cautioned that the metal can snap back hard after vertical runs. 2
Spot gold rose 2.6% to $5,538.69 an ounce by 0349 GMT after touching a record $5,591.61 earlier in the session. Spot silver was up 0.6% at $117.30 after hitting a record high of $119.34, Reuters data showed.
Politics is part of the fuel. Reuters reported this week that President Donald Trump announced plans to impose new tariffs on South Korean imports and that markets were also staring at a January 30 U.S. funding deadline that could trigger a partial government shutdown.
“The global order is shifting, and trust is gone,” Swissquote senior analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya told Australia’s ABC. “Restoring it will take time.” 3
On Thursday, Reuters also cited Trump urging Iran to strike a deal on nuclear weapons, and Tehran warning it would retaliate against the United States, Israel and supporters. The Federal Reserve held rates steady on Wednesday, while Chair Jerome Powell said inflation in December was still likely well above the Fed’s 2% target.
Some analysts argue the rally is less about panic and more about a slow shift in how money is being parked. “Growing U.S. debt and uncertainty… are leading investors to pile into gold,” Marex analyst Edward Meir said. OCBC analysts wrote that “gold is no longer just a crisis hedge,” as investors treat it more like a neutral store of value.
Silver’s fundamentals look tighter on paper, but the price action is wilder. Standard Chartered analysts said the market is still heading for a deficit this year and that the “real market tightness” comes from reduced “above-ground stocks” — metal already mined and sitting in vaults or inventories that can be delivered quickly.
Not everyone buying is thinking about bars and vaults. In a commentary published on Wednesday, Firstlinks contributor John Reade said gold’s rise is not being driven “purely by fear,” pointing instead to sticky inflation risk, heavy government debt and the way bonds have at times failed to offset equity losses. He also flagged “real yields” — returns after inflation — as a key driver when they fall. 4
Other precious metals have moved too. Spot platinum rose 1.6% to $2,739.48 an ounce after hitting a record $2,918.80 earlier this week, while palladium fell 1.3% to $2,047.
But the risks are getting louder. IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said the “parabolic” shape of the rally suggests “a pullback is not far away,” even if he sees underlying support for 2026 — and silver, in particular, has a history of turning small scares into big air pockets.
Investors now face a blunt question: is this a repricing that sticks, or a rush that breaks when the dollar steadies and headlines cool. Traders will be watching the next round of U.S. trade decisions, signs of strain in physical supply, and whether central bank demand keeps absorbing metal at these levels.
