Gold prices fell slightly, while silver recorded a sharp decrease in the first trading session in the US on Thursday. Putting pressure on the two precious metals was the USD index rising to its highest level in two weeks in the night session, along with rising US Treasury bond yields. June gold contracts fell 35.20 USD to 4,717.30 USD/ounce. Silver prices in May fell 3.186 USD to 74.77 USD/ounce.
The US military said it has intercepted two Iranian super oil tankers trying to evade the blockade, as Washington continues to hinder the transportation of the Islamic Republic, while Tehran threatens ships in the Strait of Hormuz. According to Bloomberg, large oil tankers Hedy and Hero II are currently anchored at Chabahar, an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman, after being blocked earlier this week, according to information from the US Central Command posted on the X platform on Wednesday.
These enforcement measures show that only a very small amount of oil is currently being delivered to the global market through the world's most important oil transport route. The reason is that before the US blockade was applied, Iran was the only country that still transported significant volumes through this route during the conflict. On Wednesday, Tehran once again showed its ability to put pressure on sailors and merchant ships when moving across the strait, by attacking at least three ships and forcing two ships to divert into its waters," the report said.
The USD continues to play a dominant role in the currency market. Conflicts in the Middle East are strengthening the dominance of the USD in global trade, according to an interbank foreign exchange market activity measurement index, according to a Bloomberg report. The weight of the USD in international transactions increased to a record 51.1% in March, compared to 49.2% in the previous month, according to the latest data from Swift (Global Interbank Financial Telecommunications Association). This is the highest level since 2023, when this Belgian-based organization adjusted its transaction data collection method.
Major banks around the world use Swift to communicate and conduct interbank foreign currency transactions. The world's major reserve currency is followed by the euro with about 21% market share, followed by the British Pound, Japanese Yen, Chinese yuan and Canadian dollars. JPMorgan's research group led by Joyce Chang said: "The weakening of the USD last year did not lead to a clear decline in the role of this currency as a reserve currency or capital market base.
The Eurozone private sector declined the most in 17 months, but manufacturing recovered. The Eurozone's composite PMI fell to 48.6 in April, lower than the forecast of 50.2 and recorded the strongest decline since November 2024. The service sector declined sharply as energy costs rose due to the US-Iran conflict weakening demand, while the manufacturing sector grew slightly faster despite supply difficulties.
Meanwhile, the Eurozone's manufacturing PMI increased to 52.2 in April 2026 from 51.6 in March, exceeding the forecast of 50.8 and recording the strongest improvement in business conditions since May 2022. Output increased at the fastest rate since August 2025, while new orders increased fastest in four years, supported by the first increase in export demand since February 2022.
On important external markets, WTI crude oil prices on the Nymex exchange increased and are trading around 94.50 USD/barrel. The USD index maintains an upward trend. The yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds is currently at around 4.32%.
