Overview
- Houthi attacks on Saudi-linked tankers pushed Brent above $100, a supply shock that raised inflation expectations and helped drive large intraday moves in gold this week.
- The metal fell from highs near $4,150 earlier in the week to break the $4,040 support on Thursday, extending losses toward about $4,025 in Asian trading.
- Stronger oil-linked inflation and a firmer U.S. dollar sent 10-year Treasury yields to multi-month highs and sharply increased market odds of Fed rate rises, which raises the cost of holding non-yielding gold.
- Domestic markets followed the global pullback, with Indian wholesale and retail quotes falling from roughly Rs1.49 lakh per 10g on July 22 toward about Rs1.41 lakh by July 24 and Pakistani rates easing similarly.
- Market structure is shifting as Chinese investors withdrew record sums from gold ETFs in June even as the People’s Bank of China continued physical purchases, a split that, together with ETF outflows and central-bank buying, will shape whether gold finds a durable floor ahead of next week’s Fed decisions.