Gold rises after Trump proposes more tariffs on China

Gold prices rose on Friday as investors sought safer assets after US President Donald Trump proposed $100 billion in new tariffs on China, raising concerns about an escalating trade spat between the United States and China.

Fundamentals

Spot gold was 0.4 per cent higher at $1,330.78 per ounce as of 0032 GMT, and the US gold futures GCcv1 rose 0.4 per cent to $1,334.10 an ounce.

Spot gold on Thursday dropped to a one-week low of $1,322.40 an ounce after the United States and China signalled willingness to negotiate a trade dispute.

However, President Donald Trump late on Thursday said he had instructed U.S. trade officials to consider $100 billion in additional tariffs on China, fuelling an already heated trade dispute between the world’s two biggest economies.

US stock markets slid and the yen rose against the dollar on Friday.

Gold-backed exchange traded funds in North America saw inflows in March, amid market volatility and as trade tensions between the United States and China drove safe-haven purchases to bullion, while Europe saw outflows for the second straight month.

Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.24 per cent to 854.09 tonnes on Thursday from 852.03 tonnes on Wednesday.

Physical gold demand in most Asian hubs was muted this week, weighed down by stronger prices, despite a slight pick-up in buying in India ahead of the wedding season and a key festival.

The US trade deficit increased to a near 9-1-2-year high in February, with both imports and exports rising to record highs in a sign of strong domestic and global demand.

Koza Ltd, whose founder had to abandon his Turkish gold assets, is expanding its operations in Britain with a $1 million programme to drill for gold in Ayrshire, Scotland, together with a venture partner, the company said on Thursday.

Swiss refiner Valcambi said it has signed a long-term deal to refine and sell-on gold from a Fairtrade-accredited concession of Peruvian mining co-operative Minera Limata, part of a broader strategy to drive responsible mining.

International mining companies have insisted that Democratic Republic of Congo amend portions of a new mining code to respect exemptions they were granted by its predecessor.