Gold and silver prices declined significantly at the close of trading on Friday, under strong pressure from a range of factors, most notably the rise in global sovereign bond yields and the strengthening of the US dollar, along with escalating inflationary concerns related to the continued geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
This drop in precious metal prices came amid continued uncertainty about developments in the Iranian file, especially after the recent visit of US President Donald Trump to China, which did not result in any tangible progress in calming tensions, amid an exchange of more heated statements between Washington and Tehran.
In this context, Trump escalated his rhetoric, asserting that his patience with Iran was running out, while the Iranian Foreign Minister responded by emphasizing the lack of trust in the United States, indicating that Tehran sees no point in any negotiations unless Washington demonstrates genuine seriousness in dealing with the issue.
In trading, precious metals suffered significant losses, with gold futures for June delivery falling to $4,561.90 an ounce, a decline of $123.40 or 2.63%, with weekly losses of 3.56%.
Silver also declined more sharply, with May delivery contracts falling to $77.161 an ounce, a loss of $7.751 or 9.13%, in one of the biggest waves of decline in recent times, affected by the rise of the dollar and the expected tightening of monetary policy globally.
