NEW YORK, December 30, 2025, 02:06 ET
Gold prices steadied in Asian trade on Tuesday after a sharp retreat from record highs, as investors trimmed year-end positions and looked ahead to fresh U.S. policy signals. Spot gold was up 0.7% at $4,362.30 an ounce by 00:12 ET, while U.S. gold futures rose 0.8% to $4,378.75.
The volatility has been even sharper in silver, where thin holiday trading has magnified moves. After hitting a record of about $84 an ounce, silver fell 8.7% in its biggest one-day drop since August 2020 before bouncing about 2.5% on Tuesday to around $74.1, Reuters reported. “We’ve had a cooling in the precious metals, but I don’t think this trend is over,” said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at IG, noting the Chicago Mercantile Exchange raised margin requirements — the cash traders must post to hold futures positions. Reuters
The selloff matters because forced selling can accelerate when exchanges lift margin, and when liquidity is thin fewer orders are available to absorb big trades. That can turn routine profit-taking — investors selling after a rally to lock in gains — into outsized, fast price swings.
In U.S. trading on Monday, spot gold slid 4.5% to $4,330.79 an ounce after touching a record $4,549.71 on Friday, while February futures settled 4.6% lower at $4,343.60. Platinum dropped 14.5% to $2,096.53 after touching a record $2,478.50 earlier in the session, and palladium fell 15.9% to $1,617.47. Gold has risen about 65% this year, Reuters said.
Gold’s pullbacks often hinge on the outlook for interest rates because bullion does not pay interest. Expectations for lower rates can support the metal by reducing the opportunity cost of holding it, while higher-rate expectations can weigh.
Traders are also balancing profit-taking against persistent demand for gold as a store of value when political and military risks rise. That “safe-haven” bid can offset selling, especially when markets are sensitive to headlines.
In Europe, Russia’s Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump that Moscow would review its position in peace negotiations after what the Kremlin described as a Ukrainian drone attack on one of Putin’s residences; Ukraine denied the claim.
In Asia, China fired rockets towards Taiwan during war games that Reuters said simulated a blockade, as Beijing staged its biggest drills around the island to date. Taiwan said debris entered its contiguous zone and its president condemned the drills.
Investors are now waiting for the next data point that can reset rate expectations: minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting due later Tuesday. Those minutes can move the U.S. dollar and Treasury yields, which in turn can shift demand for precious metals.
For silver and platinum, the story is not just macro policy. Both metals also have heavy industrial use, which can amplify volatility when traders reassess growth prospects or when manufacturers and investors adjust hedges.
