Gold heads for weekly gain

Gold prices held around $3,390 per ounce on Friday, hovering near a more than two-week high and poised for a weekly gain, as markets digested the implications of fresh U.S. tariffs on gold imports.

According to a Customs and Border Protection notice, 1-kilogram and 100-ounce gold bars are to be reclassified under a customs category subject to higher duties. The move is expected to hit Switzerland — the world’s largest gold refining hub and a key supplier to the U.S. — potentially disrupting established supply chains, tightening availability, and adding upward pressure to global prices.

The policy shift comes against the backdrop of intensifying trade tensions. President Donald Trump recently announced sweeping tariffs ranging from 10% to 50% on imports from dozens of countries, alongside a separate 100% duty on imported semiconductors.

These measures have fueled safe-haven demand for gold, as investors brace for the potential knock-on effects on global growth and financial market stability.

Additional support for bullion came from the U.S. monetary policy outlook. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari signaled openness to interest rate cuts in the near term, citing signs of a cooling economy, including a sharper-than-expected rise in weekly jobless claims. Such a shift toward a more accommodative policy stance would typically weaken the dollar and lower Treasury yields, making non-yielding assets like gold more attractive.

Meanwhile, on the demand side, China extended its central bank gold buying spree for a ninth consecutive month in July, underscoring a broader trend among emerging market economies to diversify reserves away from the U.S. dollar.

Sustained official sector purchases, coupled with potential supply constraints from the new U.S. tariff measures, could keep bullion prices supported in the coming weeks, even amid short-term fluctuations in investor sentiment.