At 2:40 p.m. on October 15, Vietnam time, spot gold prices increased by 1.4%, reaching 4,20011 USD/ounce, a new record high, while December gold futures increased by 1.3% to 4,218 USD.
Gold prices increased due to expectations that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) will continue to lower interest rates and increased concerns about US-China trade tensions.
According to analysts, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's dovish comments and the US government's partial shutdown have caused gold prices to accelerate strongly.
Mr. Powell said the labor market is still less, although the economy is going more steady than expected, while emphasizing that interest rate adjustments will be considered at each meeting, to balance between job risks and inflation still higher than the target.
Tyenyen comments from the Fed and the governments closure are two drivers for gold to continue to escalate, said StoneX senior analyst Matt Simpson. Investors are now almost certain that the Fed will cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage points for both October and December.
Gold is considered a safe haven in the period of low interest rates and political and economic instability. Since the beginning of the year, gold prices have increased by 59%, thanks to many factors such as strong buying from central banks, large ETF inflows, de-dollarization trends and global risk defense sentiment. Mr. Simpson believes that gold's rally is still a "crowd effect", as investors continue to pour capital just for fear of missing the price increase.
US-China trade tensions also contributed to the increase of the precious metal. President Donald Trump said Washington is considering cutting some trade relations with China, including the oil sector, while the two sides have imposed mutually retaliatory port fees.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the global growth outlook for 2025 is improved thanks to favorable financial conditions, but the IMF warned that the re-emergence of trade tensions between the two major economies could hinder the recovery.
