- Gold rose 0.1% to $4,492.51 with a record high of $4,525.19.
- Silver gains $72.27 by reaching a high of $72.70.
- The thin liquidity at the end of the year exaggerates the recent price movements.
Gold soared past the $4,500-an-ounce mark for the first time on Wednesday, while silver and platinum also hit record highs as investors piled into the precious metals on safe demand and expectations that US interest rates will fall further next year.
Spot gold rose 0.1% to $4,492.51 per ounce at 0359 GMT, after hitting a record high of $4,525.19 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures for February delivery rose 0.3% to a record high of $4,520.60.
Silver rose 1.2% to $72.27 an ounce, after hitting a peak of $72.70 earlier, while platinum jumped 3.3% to $2,351.05 after rising to an all-time high of $2,377.50.
Palladium rose nearly 2% to $1,897.11, its highest level in three years.
“Precious metals have become more of a speculative narrative around the idea that with de-globalization you need an asset that can act as a neutral intermediary without sovereign risk, especially as US-China tensions continue,” said Ilya Spivak, head of global macro at Tastylive.
Thin year-end liquidity exaggerated recent price moves, but the broader theme was likely to persist, with gold targeting $5,000 over the next six to 12 months and silver potentially pushing toward $80 as markets respond to key psychological levels, Spivak added.
Gold is up more than 70% this year, its biggest annual gain since 1979, driven by safe-haven demand, expectations of US rate cuts, robust central bank purchases, de-dollarization trends and ETF inflows, with traders pricing in two rate cuts next year.
Silver is up more than 150% over the same period, outperforming gold due to strong investment demand, its inclusion on the US critical minerals list and momentum buying.
Gold and silver have “hit the accelerator this week” with new record highs, reflecting their appeal as stores of value amid expectations of lower U.S. interest rates and persistent global debt, said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Platinum and palladium, primarily used in automotive catalytic converters to reduce emissions, have rallied this year due to tight mine supply, tariff uncertainty and a rotation away from demand for gold investments, with platinum up about 160% and palladium up more than 100% year-to-date.
“What we’re seeing in platinum and palladium has pretty much caught up,” Spivak said, adding that the thin nature of those markets makes them vulnerable to sharp swings, even as they largely track gold when liquidity returns.
