NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 5:02 PM ET — After-hours
- Spot gold fell 4.5% to $4,330.79/oz; U.S. February gold futures settled down 4.6% at $4,343.60.
- Gold-linked ETFs slid, with GLD down 4.35% and gold-miners fund GDX down 5.96% at the close.
- Newmont dropped 5.64% as the pullback hit mining shares after a sharp year-end run in metals.
Gold prices fell sharply on Monday, snapping back from record highs as investors took profits and risk controls tightened in futures trading. Spot gold fell 4.5% to $4,330.79 an ounce by 1:51 p.m. ET and U.S. gold futures for February delivery settled 4.6% lower at $4,343.60.
The reversal matters now because bullion’s late-year rally drew in momentum and hedging flows, leaving the market vulnerable to abrupt position cuts. Thin holiday trading can magnify moves when leveraged bets unwind.
One trigger was higher collateral demands in futures markets. CME Group raised margin requirements for precious metals contracts, which increases the cash traders must post to hold positions and can force some to reduce exposure.
“We are seeing profit-taking pullbacks off of those spectacularly high levels,” said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures. Reuters
Margin requirements are the upfront collateral used to back leveraged futures trades; exchanges often raise them after big swings to reduce default risk. CME said the increase followed its normal review of market volatility, according to AP.
Gold-linked equity products slid in step with the metal. SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), a gold-backed exchange-traded fund, closed down 4.35% at $398.60, while VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) fell 5.96% to $85.85.
Newmont, the world’s largest gold miner, fell 5.64% to $99.81 at the close, according to StockAnalysis.com data. AP said smaller miners including AngloGold and Gold Fields also fell as the metals trade reversed.
Gold had hit a record $4,549.71 on Friday and is up about 65% so far this year, Reuters reported. The slide was part of a broad retreat across precious metals, with spot silver down 9.5% on the day.
Gold is often treated as a safe-haven asset — bought during periods of economic or geopolitical uncertainty — but that demand can fade quickly when tensions cool and traders lock in gains.
Headlines on Ukraine were also in focus. President Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump that Russia would review its position in peace negotiations after what Moscow said was a Ukrainian drone attack, the Kremlin said, in comments cited by Reuters.
TD Securities commodity strategist Daniel Ghali said liquidity constraints and holiday-thinned trading exacerbated the drop, pointing to a looming deadline for the President to make a recommendation tied to a U.S. critical minerals investigation.
Traders are now watching whether margin requirements rise again and whether year-end repositioning keeps pressure on the complex. Markets are also looking ahead to the Federal Reserve’s December meeting minutes for clues on the rate path; the Fed says minutes are released three weeks after the policy decision, and lower rates typically support assets like gold that pay no interest.
